Frauds and Scams

NEW YORK - Former White House advisor Steve Bannon has been indicted on charges he defrauded donors in a $25 million campaign to build a border wall, federal prosecutors in Manhattan said Thursday. (New York Post)

The eggs were covered in glitter and painted purple. When they splattered against the sides of the house that winter, the yolks froze, leaving an icy mess that could only be scrubbed away with soap and hot water. Lauren Auch’s home was egged three times in the span of a month, beginning Christmas morning 2015. The attacks didn’t feel like pranks — they felt personal, vicious. Whoever was behind them knew purple was Auch’s favourite colour. She began placing weapons around the house — a hatchet by her bed, a hammer by the front door, unsure of what the attacker would do next. (Edmonton Journal)

VANCOUVER - A B.C. Supreme Court judge has ruled that a critical test in the extradition case of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou has been met, and the extradition process will continue. (CTV)

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Meng Wanzhou's extradition case will proceed. What now?

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) is reporting scammers are setting up websites to sell bogus products, and using fake emails, texts, and social media posts as a ruse to take your money and get your personal information. (Castanet)

Mounties in B.C.’s Southern Interior have released images of a man suspected of multiple crimes across the region in the past week. Police believe the man is connected to a string of criminal activity in the North Okanagan, Thompson-Nicola, Nicola Valley, and the Central Okanagan. (Vancouver Sun)

NEW YORK - A hardened fraudster ran a massive $18 million insurance fraud scam that involved an NYPD cop and five crooked 911 operators, prosecutors charged Thursday. Ringleader Anthony Rose, 51, ran the elaborate no-fault insurance scheme that involved bribes to NYPD employees and hospital staff who handed over the confidential information of people involved in car crashes. All told, 27 people were charged in the scheme, including Rose’s wife and son. (New York Daily News)

RCMP in Surrey, B.C., are investigating an allegation of "stolen valour" involving a man who has appeared in newspaper articles with a chest full of medals claiming to be a homeless veteran. (CBC)

B.C. residents are being warned to beware of an online romance scammer pretending to be Avengers actor Jeremy Renner who is preying on women through social media websites. (The Province)

In what could be one of the largest and longest-lasting benefits fraud schemes ever discovered in Canada, a Toronto geriatric hospital has dismissed approximately 150 employees for falsely claiming as much as $5 million in benefits over an eight-year period. (Calgary Herald)

A hearing scheduled for Monday in South Florida may determine whether a Chinese woman will remain jailedfollowing charges that she lied to a federal officer after entering Mar-a-Lago, President Trump’s resort in Palm Beach. (Washington Post)