Articles Posted in Fraud

Martin Quoc Pham, of Garden Grove, was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison for running two fraud schemes in which he used people’s personal identification to obtain home equity lines of credit and credit card accounts. For the home equity line of credit scheme, Pham would use personal ID information to take over home equity lines at JP Morgan. He then transferred the money into his own bank account. The credit card scheme involved taking the personal identification of others and signing them up for credit cards and then running up the credit card bills. Pham had three other co-conspirators who all plead guilty. Investigators estimate Pham made about $1.5 million conducting these fraudulent operations. Besides the 11 years he will have to spend in prison, Pham will also have to pay $537,973 in restitution.

Identity theft
can lead to empty bank accounts, poor credit and severe debt. It is a federal offense since, often, victims are not from California or the fraudulent credit cards are used to buy things from outside of California. It is one of the most serious crimes in California and will always lead to prison time. Whether you live in Westminster, Orange or Laguna Hills, if you are charged with fraud, call an experienced criminal defense attorney right away to assist you.

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Jason Le Tran was arrested this week on suspicion of using stolen credit cards to buy over $11,000 worth of makeup. Tran was using stolen credit car information from around the U.S. and then ordering makeup online through Sephora’s website. The stolen goods were shipped to three apartments in Costa Mesa and to his partner in Vietnam. The products were then sold on eBay. Tran was caught after a detective posed as a delivery man and observed Tran picking up the stolen goods. After searching his house, detectives found about $4,000 worth of unopened makeup, so they quickly arrested him. He will be charged with identity theft and grand theft.

Identity theft is the taking of someone’s name or personal information to use it for an unlawful purpose. If you are a victim of identity theft, this site contains useful tips on how to handle the matter. If you are a suspect of identity theft, you will likely be charged with a felony and are looking at serious prison time. Whether you live in Anaheim, Laguna Wood, and Irvine, if you are charged with identity theft or any other type of fraud, call an experienced criminal defense attorney right away.

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Susana Duran had been working for a 92-year-old woman in Laguna Woods since June as a caretaker. Allegedly, while working there, Duran stole at least $35,000 from her client. Duran would take the woman’s credit card and pin number from her nightstand and withdraw $1,000 at a time and then put it in her personal bank account. She would then send the money in her account to her family in Mexico. She would also buy things with the credit cards and when the bills came in the mail, Duran would not show the client.

One day, Duran was sick so a substitute caretaker came to the victim’s home to take care of her. A credit card bill came and the substitute caretaker showed the client. The client did not recognize many of the charges and so she called the company that had placed Duran in her home. An investigation was launched and police found out that at least $35,000 had already been stolen. Investigators claim that by the time the investigation is over, they expect to find around $100,000 stolen. Duran was arrested and is being held in jail until trial.

If charged and convicted of theft and fraud of an elderly person, Duran will likely have to spend a few years in prison. Whether you live in La Palma, Yorba Linda or Huntington Beach, if you are charged with theft, fraud, or elder abuse, call an experienced criminal defense attorney to assist you.

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During these tough economic times, people are going to desperate measures to get money. The newest way people are making money, is torching their cars or reporting them stolen and then collecting the insurance money. Suspected vehicle arson fraud went up 31% from 2007 to 2008. Suspected vehicle theft fraud went up 15% from 2007 to 2008. Already in 2009, there are more questionable vehicle thefts and arsons, as well as more suspicious “hit while parked” reports and phantom accidents than in 2008.

An obvious sign of fraud is when inconsistent stories are told to the insurance company. Often, people in Southern California drive their cars down to Mexico and leave them there, and then report the cars stolen. Now, insurance companies are investigating claims more thoroughly. If you are caught lying to the insurance companies, you will be charged with insurance fraud. Once charged, you must pay back what you owe the insurance company and you may even go to jail. For more information on fraud investigation, click here.

Whether you live in Irvine, Santa Ana or Newport Beach, if you are charged with fraud, you will need an experienced Orange County defense attorney to assist you.

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Colin Nathanson was the president and CEO of Giant Golf Company and Play Big Enterprises. While owning those companies, he admitted that he fraudulently convinced hundreds of people to invest in his companies, claiming that the companies would soon be publicly traded or would merge with a larger company. Nathanson received about $55 million from the investors and then bought houses, went on pricey vacations and used the money for his gambling addiction. The Securities and Exchange Commission started investigating him in 2005 and realized he was engaging in fraudulent activity. This week, Nathanson was sentenced to 27 years in federal prison for the fraud he committed. As soon as he gets out, he will deported to South Africa since he was illegally in the U.S.

Someone being suspected of defrauding people out of money can be prosecuted criminally and sued in civil court. Even though Nathanson is in prison, he can also be sued by all the people he stole money from. Nathanson was sentenced to 27 years. To put this in context, a murderer would likely be sentenced to about 25 years. After Enron, the court has been more harsh in sentencing white collar criminals, especially when the dollar loss was so great. Whether you live in Newport Beach, Laguna Beach or Huntington Beach, if you are charged with fraud or any other white collar crime, you will need an experienced criminal defense attorney on your side.

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Megan Marie Roy posed as a phony midwife and tried to deliver a baby that was stillborn. She met the woman through a real midwife who could not help the pregnant woman so Roy offered her services. A Santa Ana court charged her with fraud for the unauthorized practice of medicine. She was sentenced to 3 years of probation and 400 hours of community service and was also ordered to pay $2,000 to St. Jude’s Research Hospital.

Fraud is the intentional deception of another, made for personal gain. There are many types of fraud that one can get charged with, including: Medical, Insurance, Credit Card, and Accounting fraud. For the type of fraud that Roy committed, she is lucky she did not receive any prison time. If she had caused any harm to the woman or the baby, she would receive a long prison sentence. Whether you live in Buena Park, Cypress or Cerritos, if you are charged with fraud, call an experienced defense attorney to assist you with your legal matters.

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Amber Lynn Phelps and co-defendant Julie Catherine Clifford attacked a woman in an Anaheim parking lot and stole her purse in 2008. They said that they would give it back to her if she gave them money. Phelps was mad at the victim because she thought her boyfriend was dating the victim. When Anaheim police tried to arrest Phelps and Clifford, they sped away in a car. After a few minutes of trying to escape, Phelps crashed into another car, seriously injuring the driver. Phelps and Clifford were both arrested and Phelps was charged with conspiracy, evading police while driving recklessly and causing serious bodily injury and second degree robbery. She was convicted and sentenced to nine years in prison.

Whether you live in San Clemente, Fountain Valley or Fullerton, once the police are after you, the best thing to do is surrender and cooperate with the police. A chase in the middle of busy streets is very dangerous to the officers, the suspects and innocent bystanders in the area. You will be charged with evading arrest if you try to flee the scene. This adds additional time to your sentence and stays on your criminal record. If you are about to be arrested for a crime, cooperate with the police and then call an experienced criminal defense attorney.

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Sue Nanda was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Friday for medical insurance fraud. She and about 10 other people would recruit patients to undergo unnecessary medical procedures to collect insurance money. In exchange, the patients would receive money or free cosmetic surgery. She plead guilty in February to 22 felony counts relating to medical fraud at the Unity Outpatient Surgery Center in Buena Park. She was said to have made about $2.35 million dollars recruiting patients over about 4 years. This medical insurance scam is said to be the biggest scam in the nation and resulted in the profit of about $154 million dollars. Nanda’s lawyer claims she thought what the medical center was doing was legal.

Medical insurance fraud is just one type of fraud that a person can be charged with. Other types of fraud include credit card fraud, tax fraud, identity theft, embezzlement, forgery and accounting fraud. Fraud is a criminal charge but also can be brought in civil court. A person charged with fraud will need an experienced attorney to help them through the legal process.

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