fraud

Published on: December 9, 2024

Intoxicated Florida Man Left 3 Injured in Hit-and-Run

A Florida man is facing multiple charges for allegedly fleeing after causing a car crash and then smashing into a police vehicle in an alleged attempt to get away.

Early in the morning on December 3, a man was driving in Tallahassee. When he was close to an intersection he allegedly crashed into another automobile. Two people in the damaged car were injured, and the man reportedly took off immediately after the accident. When the authorities learned about the situation, officers from the Tallahassee Police Department went to the scene. They set out to find the suspect and they saw him driving close to the accident site. When they attempted to pull him over, the man reportedly crashed into a curb before trying to drive away.

Police cars were parked around the suspect’s car to prevent him from leaving, but he reportedly stepped on the gas and hit an officer’s vehicle. When they interacted with him, the police reported that they believed he was driving under the influence.

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Published on: September 5, 2024

Fraud Accusation Led to Florida Man’s 75th Arrest

by Staycie R. Sena

After being accused of retail theft-related offenses in August, a Florida man with a criminal history dating back decades was booked into the same jail for the 75th time.

Last month, a man from Clearwater reached a troubling milestone – his 75th arrest and booking into the Orient Road Jail. The 57-year-old habitual offender was first arrested in 1985, and over nearly four decades, he has faced numerous charges that resulted in 11 stints in prison.

According to reports, agents from the Hillsboro County Sheriff’s Office Organized Retail Theft Unit were investigating claims that fraudulent activity had resulted in merchandise from Lowe’s stores in Hillsboro and Clearwater Counties being stolen an estimated total of ten times. They purported that the person executed the scheme by taking barcodes from less expensive items and placing them onto higher-priced merchandise, allowing them to purchase products at a significantly lower cost. They believed they had enough information to determine who had carried out the alleged fraud, and upon further investigation, the authorities said the suspect had posted multiple online ads selling what they assumed was merchandise from Lowe’s.

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Published on: June 27, 2024

Florida Couple Fell Victim to $400,000 Phone Scam

by Staycie R. Sena

A scammer reportedly called a couple in Florida and told them they would be arrested for illegal online account activity if they did not hand over $400,000 in gold bars to a person posing as a government official.

At the beginning of May, a married couple in Jensen Beach received a phone call from someone stating that they were an agent for Amazon, and they found what they believed was fraudulent activity on the 78-year-old man’s account. They additionally claimed his wife’s personal account was flagged for fraud. During the discussion, the alleged agent told the man the call was being transferred to a government agent.

According to reports, the person identified themselves as “Brian Alba,” who told the man that he had several active arrest warrants because of the situation. Alba reportedly negotiated a deal with the man, offering to keep him out of the lockup if he obtained $154,000 in gold. They said he should have his bank give him a cashier’s check to make the purchase, and once it was received, Alba would send a cashier’s check to the man in the amount of the purchase. He was instructed to wrap the gold in a box to make it look like a Christmas gift.

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Published on: April 18, 2024

Man Could Spend 100 Years in Prison for Drugs and Fraud

by Staycie R. Sena

A man in Texas is facing charges that could lead to a conviction of over 100 years in prison after the authorities alleged that he was fraudulently in possession of over 50 pieces of mail and other information in different people’s names.

According to jail records, a man from Bryan, Texas, was arrested on April 9 for allegedly stealing a vehicle, fraudulently possessing identifying information, and carrying less than a gram of drug. He was released from custody the following day.

Approximately one week later, the man found himself in trouble with the law again for several additional allegations. It was reported that on the evening of April 16, he was riding around on a moped. The authorities were notified by someone in the area who reported that a man on a motorbike was harassing people.

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Published on: August 3, 2023

Woman Posed as Doctor for Over a Year Using Relative’s License

by Staycie R. Sena

A woman in New Jersey is facing charges for allegedly using a family member’s name to write prescriptions for patients while reportedly practicing medicine without a license.

Between March 2022 and June 2023, a 62-year-old woman from Toms River, New Jersey, was reportedly working as a physician out of an office at Shore Medical Associates in Ocean County.

According to reports, the woman was not legally licensed to practice medicine, but she allegedly did so during her time at Shores Medical. She was reportedly using the name and valid medical license number of one of her relatives so she could treat patients and write prescriptions during her time at the facility.

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Published on: April 20, 2023

Couple Stole Millions from Malibu Doctor

by Staycie R. Sena

In June 2017, a couple met and became friends with a doctor from Malibu worth more than $60 million. The man had a mental health condition, and he was unable to take care of himself.

A couple of days later, the pair began residing with the doctor in his Malibu beachfront home, but they reportedly did not pay anything to stay there.

According to reports, they appointed themselves as his caretakers. They allegedly stopped him from communicating with his loved ones as they took control of his daily life. They also reportedly kept the man drugged with ketamine, marijuana, and LSD for the following year.

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Published on: October 27, 2022

3 Suspects Stole over $1 M from PPP with Fraudulent Claims

by Staycie R. Sena

Three people are facing charges for allegedly stealing approximately $1 M in COVID-19 relief funds from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of North Carolina reported that during an investigation of a possible fraud case, it was discovered that between March and November 2021, almost $1 M was fraudulently taken from the PPP.

It was believed that the money was stolen through many fraudulent applications that were submitted for PPP relief in different states for businesses that were not real.

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Published on: October 4, 2022

Manager Stole Bank Card Left Behind by Customer

by Staycie R. Sena

A fast-food restaurant manager and his girlfriend allegedly stole a debit card that a customer accidentally left in the establishment and spent over $700 within two hours.

On June 29, a customer at a Burger King in Royal Palm Beach, Florida, left the restaurant without taking their Wells Fargo debit card.

When an employee found the card, they reportedly turned it over to the manager on duty.

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Published on: September 18, 2022

Ex-Firefighter Sold CPR Cards Without Providing Training

by Staycie R. Sena

A man who was a Hialeah firefighter for two decades was accused of selling thousands of life support certification cards for over $870,000 without giving the necessary instructional classes to the applicants.

For the past two years, a 60-year-old man who was a firefighter for 20 years with the Hialeah Fire Department was teaching life support classes to people seeking certification from the American Heart Association.

It was reported that the man has training and certifications in several techniques such as basic, advanced cardiovascular, and advanced pediatric life support.

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Published on: September 12, 2022

Suspect Arrested for Unauthorized Discount at Self-Checkout

by Staycie R. Sena

A shopper in a Texas Walmart is facing several charges after the authorities accused her of trying to steal items by using the barcode scanner incorrectly while checking out of the store.

It was reported that on September 3, the Walmart Supercenter in Brownsville, Texas, had a patron who tried to scam them when they used the self-checkout.

The woman reportedly had items in her cart totaling an estimated $100.

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