The Yale Med School Fraud: Where Were the Auditors?
Specializing in financial investigations as we do, I am always fascinated when new financial frauds come to light, and I always want to know how the person got caught.
In the case of the recent Yale School of Medicine fraud in which an administrator…
Brexit’s Prediction Lesson for Investigators
What lesson does the Brexit vote hold for anyone conducting or contemplating fact investigation?
Don’t let confirmation bias muddy your thinking.
One of the key “Investigator’s Enemies” identified in my book, The Art of Fact Investigation,…
Hawala: Red Flags for Detecting the World’s Oldest Form of Money Laundering
We write (and tell our clients) consistently about how difficult it is to obtain the bank account information of litigation opponents without first getting a court order. There are people out there who will charge you to trick banks into…
Increasing Transparency of UK Company Ownership
UK lawmakers recently unveiled a new plan to fight domestic and international corruption within its borders. From the perspective of investigators tasked with uncovering hidden assets, the most striking piece of this legislation is the…
News Anchor Pleads Guilty to Fraud Scheme with Private Investigator
Juliet Bickford, a Virginia news anchor, pleaded guilty to federal tax fraud and money laundering charges on Wednesday in connection with an international fraud scheme orchestrated by her private investigator boyfriend, Theodoros Grontis. …
Spanish Princess Accused of Fraud
Yesterday, a judge in Spain named Princess Cristina, King Juan Carlos’s youngest daughter, as a suspect in an ongoing money laundering and tax fraud case involving the Princess’s husband, Inaki Urdangarin. The judge alleges…
Secret Lender Agents Make Asset Searches Harder
It’s always nice to be able to know who has loaned people money. It helps in asset searches, of course, but we also like to call bankers in after-fraud investigations. Now getting to the identity of those lenders is about to get harder.…
Background Checks for All: Lessons from the Alleged Archdiocese Theft
Anita Collins, an elderly woman working as an accounts payable clerk for the New York Archdiocese, was recently arrested for embezzling funds from the church. That’s bad news for the archdiocese. But the real black eye for…
Forensic Investigations: Due Diligence Done Correctly
What’s the difference between a forensic audit and a regular audit? We think we know the difference when we see it, but what is it? The issue came up before a short talk I was giving to some accountants last week, and the answer…
Why the Greek Crisis Should Make you Think about Switzerland
One thing we always tell new clients: there is no such thing as a “local” investigation. A Russian guy in L.A. means you could be dealing with a Nevada corporation in addition to Russia and California. An apartment in Miami may be…
