Links in “Financial Crime”

Wendy Wall, former CEO of the now defunct Pepsi Cola FCU, has been sentenced to 21 months in federal prison and ordered to pay restitution to NCUA in the amount of $480,273. Wall was found guilty of embezzling money through a fraudulent loan scheme. [1/28/15]

Consumers now have new tools to help combat identity theft. The National Credit Union Administration added a new page to its website to assist consumers in identifying and preventing tax-related identity theft. The new page can be found here. [1/27/15]

Former Mississippi State Senator Tommy Robertson served as board attorney for $195 million Singing River FCU. Now he’s accused of using that position to embezzle more than $484,000 from loan escrow proceeds. [1/27/15]

Here’s another cautionary tale about the importance of carefully vetting your cleaning company and ensuring that all documents with sensitive information are locked away at night. The CEO of the Greater Pittsburgh Police FCU recently discovered that her cleaning company employees were not only stealing soft drinks, office supplies, and promotional clothing, but also signature cards containing sensitive member information. [1/19/15]

A 2008 armed robbery at a Fort Financial FCU branch went horribly wrong when two armed thieves were deterred by the security system and fled to a nearby home. The elderly owner of the home, who was forced to move from one room to another by one of the robbers, later died of a heart attack. At issue was a 1934 law that makes it a separate crime to take a hostage in the course of robbing a financial institution. The court ruled that the robber’s actions amounted to the taking of a hostage. [1/15/15]

Former loan guarantee specialist for HUD had a prior criminal record that spanned more than two decades. He was just sentenced to 26 months for defrauding the government of $843,000. [1/13/15]

Colorado's attorney general is warning residents of a debt collection scam where the callers pose as government agencies and have the victims' Social Security numbers. Tell-tale signs include threats of arrest, refusal to provide proof of debt, and typos, such as "Court House," "law suit," and "United Stetes of America." [1/9/15]

Simplicity Bank of Covina, California, has reported that counterfeit checks in connection with an online auction scam have been presented nationwide. The OCC issued a letter detailing the routing number, appearance, and unique traits of the checks. Find out what to look for to protect your institution. [1/7/15]

Linda Volz, the Financial Crimes Investigator at TruMark Financial Credit Union in Philadelphia, PA, has been credited by law enforcement with identifying a check scam in which a con artist was using young women and college students to deposit phony checks at multiple financial institutions. With Volz’s help the suspect was arrested at which time he was found to be in possession of handguns, drugs, cash, and bogus drug prescriptions. [12/24/14]

Mortgage servicer Ocwen settled with New York for alleged misdeeds in its dealings with distressed homeowners for $150 million and the resignation of its founder and executive chairman. [12/23/14]