FINANCIAL CRIMES – TRACKING THE GLOBAL CRIMINAL & LOCATING HIDDEN ASSETS

American Investigative Specialists P.O. Box 951628 Lake Mary, Florida 32795 Phone: (407) 323-7000 www.fraudandsecurityexperts.com [email protected]

Ronald F. Worst, Criminologist (Security Expert & Fraud Examiner) Copyright © 2008 by American Investigative Specialists, Inc. All Rights Reserved

PEOPLE IDENTIFIERS • • • • • • • • • •

Birth/Alias Name, Social Security Number, Date of Birth Drivers License Vehicle Registration Voter Registration Social Security Administration (SSA) Marriage License Divorce Records Professional Licenses Property/Mortgage/Deed Records Newspaper/Magazine Subscriptions PEOPLE WHO CAN ASSIST YOU

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Family Members Business Associates Friends Former Employers Neighbors Ex-Spouse Enemies Local Bank Manager Local Accountant Stock Broker Real Estate Broker Local Attorney License Notary Republic Directory Assistance Operator (411) Federal Aviation Administration (FAA): Pilot Info, Physical Exams, Aircraft Info, Accidents Located in Oklahoma City National Transportation Safety Board: Aircraft, Rail Road, Bus Vehicle Information LOCATIONS TO LOOK

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Previous/Current Residence Previous/Current Employment State Employment Commission – Review Records Professional Affiliations Post Office/Private Mail Drops Vehicles Trash/Dumpster Diving Post Office – P.O. Box Registration Form/Change of Address Form 1

INTERNET RESEARCH • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Professional Web Sites – Federal, State, County, City, Town Personal Web Sites – Yahoo Groups, Blogs, Email Post Boards, Myspace.com Search Engines – Google, Dogpile, Yahoo Private Investigator Site – myfapi.org, pimall.com National Third Party Databases – Autotrackxp, IRBSearch, Tracers, Skip Smasher News Media Resources Phone Disks on CD Local Library Argali.com – address, phone & cell phone locator Anywho.com – people locator Looksmart.com – people locator Assignmenteditor.com – media resource Northernlight.com – media resource Barrons.com – financial news media NYtimes.com – media resource BREAKDOWN OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER

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First Three Numbers – State that Registered/Issued the SSN Middle Two Numbers – Year the SSN was Registered/Issued Last Four Numbers – Random Sequence of numbers (not important) CIVIL RECORDS

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Names/Alias Date of Birth Social Security Number Last Known Address Telephone Numbers Other Personal Identifiers CORPORATE RECORDS

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Name of Corporation/Business Officers Directors Registered Agents Annual Corporation Registration Reports Amendment History/Activity Financial Reports Location of Branch Offices Majority Stock Holders 2

BUSINESS RECORDS • • • • • • •

Assumed Names – Doing Business As (DBA’s) City/County Occupational Licenses Civil Litigation Filings Uniform Commercial Codes (UCC Filings) Tax Assessor Office Real Property Records Probate Records WHO HOLDS PROFESSIONAL LICENSES

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Professional Certifications – Letters next to the persons name Accountants Attorneys Real Estate Brokers Insurance Brokers Notaries Fishing/Hunting Private Investigators Security Officers Firearms License Doctors/Nurses Stock/Investment Brokers POSSIBLE INFORMATION WHILE DUMPSTER DIVING

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Cell Phone/Telephone Records FED Ex/UPS Package Labels Letters/Envelopes Credit/Debit Card Receipts Expense Account Statements/Receipts Newspaper/Magazine Subscriptions Fax Summary Bank Statements Travel Brochures/Catalogs Hotel Receipts/Statements IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOUND IN VOTER REGISTRATION FORMS

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Full name Last known Address (location at the time of registering) Date of Birth 3

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Social Security Number Possible Phone Numbers INFORMATION FOUND IN MARRIAGE LICENSES

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Maiden Name, Married Name (Previous Marriage), Family Names – Females Name, Address of each Spouse Proof of ID: Driver’s License Number or Passport Number Date of Birth Current Address of Parent in a marriage of a minor Both Spouse’s Signature Witness of the Ceremony and/or Witness Performing the Ceremony (Notarized) UNIFORM COMMERCIAL CODES (UCC’S)

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What is a UCC Filing? Answer: Everything/Anything that you Finance. Answer: All Recorded Liens and Judgments. Financing: Borrower? Who & Where is the Lender? Any Collateral? They Still Making Payments? Where are the Payments coming from? CRIMINAL RECORDS

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Full Name, Date of Birth, Case #, Type of Offense Felony, Misdemeanor: Charges, Convictions Domestic Violence: Injunctions = Retraining Orders Traffic Infractions (Tickets) TYPES OF COURT RECORDS IN A CASE FILE

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Courts Pleadings – Example: Motions, Summons, Complaints, Amended Complaints, etc. Written Interrogatories Deposition Transcripts Witness Names Verdicts Settlements Judgments Financial Statements/Affidavits Bank Accounts/Financial Accounts Tax Returns TAX ASSESSORS RECORDS (EVALUATING THE ASSETS)

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Real Property: Land – Raw Dirt, Building and any Improvements, Fixtures, Equipment Business: Sales Tax, Franchise Tax, Import Tax, Income Tax 4

COUNTY RECORDER OFFICE RECORDS • • • • • •

History of All Real Estate Transactions of the Property (how many times it was sold) Location of the Property All Purchasers and Sellers (Deed) Sale Price of the Property (each time the property was sold) Which Financial Institution Holds the Mortgage on the Property Warranty Deed – price of the property: look for the Tax Stamps (number of stamps times the value of the stamps equals what the property sold for) PROBATE RECORDS (INHERITANCE INFORMATION)

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Full Inventory List of Assets of the Estate Full Names of Persons who have an interest in the Estate The Deceased Financial Position (Any Outstanding Debt to Pay Off) All Names and Addresses of Heirs Valuation Report of the Estate’s Assets Executor or Manager Name of the Estate

BASIC PRINCIPLES ON PREMISES LIABILITY & SECURITY NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS • • •

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Foreseeability of the Act (Prior or Present Events to Establish a Future Event) Prior Knowledge and Current Awareness of the Problems Safety and Security Measures Lacking at the Site Reasonable Measures for the Circumstances Nature and Frequency of Prior Criminal Activity on the Premises (Part 1 Crime: Crimes Against Persons, Part 2 Crime: Crimes Against Property) – Crimes Stats, Service Calls Any Possible Presence of Suspicious People BASIC PRINCIPLES ON FINANCIAL FRAUD

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Can’t Resist on Just Committing One Fraud. Greed Sets Inn Each Fraud is Larger than the Last Fraud Committed Fraud Is Meant to Be Hidden You have to Look for It Or You’ll Never Know It Until It’s to Late Usually First Time Offenders Receive a Slap on the Wrist Fraudsters keep their family close to their heart but their victims even closer Fraudsters Feed on Opportunity TYPES OF FINANCIAL FRAUDS AND SCAMS

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Internet Fraud, Real Estate Fraud, Online Banking, Identity Theft, Money Laundering, Credit & Debit Transactions, Investment Fraud 5

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Fraud Marketing One Liners: Life Time Guaranteed, We Have Inside Information, Can’t Lose…It’s a Sure Thing, Receive the Highest Return on Your Money, Have to do It Right Now, If You Don’t Do It Now… It Will Be Gone Tomorrow COMMON TECHNIQUES ON HOW FRAUDSTERS HIDE YOUR MONEY

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Transfer the Money to Family Members or Friends Transfer the Money to Parties Under Family or Business Control Opens Up a Children’s Trust or Family Trust Account Paying Over and Above the Actual Mortgage Payment Applies For an Equity Insurance Policy Making Payments on Credit Cards that Creates the Cards as Savings Accounts Starts Buying Cashiers Checks, Travelers Checks, and Savings Bonds Buy Value and Equity Insurance Policies: Whole Life or Universal Life Insurance Policies in which the fraudster would borrow against the policy which the fraudster then showed a legitimate source of income from a loan which the fraudster can claim as spending money to not alert the IRS or the FBI Cash Management Accounts (CMA’s) from Stock Brokerage Firms which are checking, savings, brokerage account all in one Creates a Hedge Account (brokerage investment company that acts like a bank account) Registers Ghost Corporations through the states of Delaware, Nevada, or Offshore Transfer money of less than $10,000.00 so that the banks will not report the transactions to the Government (FinCEN) BASIC DOMESTIC (U.S.) ASSET INVESTIGATION & RECOVERY

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Bank Statements Tax Returns Debit/Credit Card Statements Cell Phone Bills Copies of all Canceled Checks (Front and Back) Copies of all Escrow Checks (usually held during the sale of the house, then given to the seller after a few weeks) Copies of all Documents, Notes within the Banks files (When New Accounts are Open, the bank opens a file on each customer) Wire Transfer Documents Cashiers Checks/Money Orders Records on All Cash Withdraws and Transfers Courier Delivery Services (Example: UPS, FED EX) Telephone Records Toll Records Driver’s License History (Possible State Location) Calling Card Records Look For Excessive Payments (Example: Credit Cards, Mortgage) 6

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Find the People Who May Have Helped the Fraudster Look for Any Surprise Vacations (Cancun, Mexico; Belize, Costa Rica) Check with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) who is in charge of overseeing U.S. Banks. *Use them for Offshore Relationships as Well* SIMPLE INDICATORS OF FRAUD

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Numerous Traveling to the Same Location or to a Bank Haven Country Purchases of Expensive Cars, Jewelry, Boats, Planes, and House Interior Fixtures A piece of Property sold 3 or more times in one day Anyone who is an Officer or Director of 10 or more Companies Anyone who wears expensive shoes that no body has ever heard of before TYPES OF INVESTMENTS

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Stocks Bonds Mutual Funds Hedge Accounts Savings/Checking Accounts7 Savings Bonds Certificate of Deposits (CD’s) Any Business Investment Interest BASIC OFFSHORE ASSETS INVESTIGATION & RECOVERY

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Documents on All Domestic U.S Bank Transfers to Offshore Entities & Banks Do They Have a Travel Agent? How are They Traveling Offshore? (Example: Rental Car, Airline Traveling) Check with the International Association of Travel Agents located in Montreal, Canada to review International Flight Records Check with the Airline Reporting Corporation located in Virginia to review Domestic Flight Records Passport Stamps Credit Card Charges Any Calls to Family or Friends by the Fraudster from Offshore Location? Travelers Checks Currency Exchange Stations Hotel Receipts International Calling Cards Long Distance Calls from Land Lines Any Brochures, Magazines, Figurines, etc. found at Fraudsters U.S. Location Contact the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN – A division within the Department of the Treasury) 7

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Research if Your Targeted Country has signed the MLAT (Multilateral Assistance Treaty – Most, not all countries, have signed this treaty in which if proceeds are utilized in drug related crimes, the recovery of the money is a lot easier) IMPORTANT INFORMATIONAL RECORDS & RESOURCES

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Credit Bureaus – Experian, Equifax, Trans Union Medical Records – Medical Information Bureau Info Brokers, Third Party Record Resellers Government Agencies – FBI, IRS, DEA, FinCEN TYPES OF PEOPLE WHO CAN ASSIST YOU IN LOCATING FRAUDSTER

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Ex Spouses Debtors and Creditors Family Members from Hell Secret Lovers *As the old saying goes, “Three can keep a secret if two of them are dead”* OFFSHORE INVESTIGATIVE RESOURCES

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U.S. Embassies Online International Newspapers Escapeartist.com Offshorealert.com Scambusters.org Goldhaven.com Offshore Yahoo Groups Message Boards POPLUAR OFFSHORE BANKS

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Standard Bank Offshore: www.standardbank.com Barclays Bank: www.barclays.com Bank of Bermuda: www.biba.org (Bermuda International Business Association) Royal Bank of Canada: www.rbcprivatebanking.com Scotiabank International: www.scotiabank.ca Caymanx National Bank: www.enterprise.net/caymanx Bank of Italy: www.bci.it/ National Bank of Paris: www.bnp.fr/ UBS: www.ubs.com Republic Bank in Caribbean: www.republictt.com Bayshore Bank: www.bayshorebank.com Banex Bank: www.banex.fi.cr 8

OFFSHORE INFORMATION SOURCES ON THE INTERNET • • • • • • • • • •

Vietnam Business Journal Caribbean Online Costa Rica NetGuide Expatriate Life Escape Artist Taipan Honduras Online Fleethouse Belize First Magazine Any & All Newspapers, Magazines, Journals, and Library Internet Sites NOTES

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