All:
We strongly recommend that you require proof of identity and a valid original discharge paper if you approached by any individual asking for money for any reason. We here at Bergen County have reason to believe that there is a person or persons claiming that we have sent them to you or your organization for cash/money. Please be aware that we have not sent them to you. Also, we require proof of veteran status and suggest that you get proofs from anyone asking at your bar, facility or on the phone for money regardless of how compelling their circumstance may seem. Please share this alert with your members and contact us if you know of anyone who has encountered this situation. If you have already been contacted and or gave cash please let us know.
This email is being distributed as per Bergen County Veteran Services, Director A.J. Luna, please use your careful discretion and contact at 201-336-6326 or 201-336-6329 with any questions or concerns.
Susan Krause
Administrative Assistant
Department of Human Services
Division of Veteran Services
One Bergen County Plaza, 2nd Floor
Hackensack, NJ 07601
Phone: 201-336-6329
Fax: 201-336-6327
E-mail: skrause@co.bergen.nj.us
New Orleans LA, the Nigerian Prince has been found and he is a white guy from New Orleans . Police in New Orleans have arrested a 67-year-old man after he allegedly helped swindle people out of thousands of dollars as a middleman in a “Nigerian prince” Internet scam.
Michael Neu, 67, was a middle-man in a scam that involved co-conspirators in Nigeria, report says. (Slidell Police Department)
Michael Neu, of Slidell, is facing 269 counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering, the New Orleans Advocate reported.
The “Nigerian Prince” phishing scam involves getting an email from a Nigerian official who claims the recipient has been named a beneficiary in a will and will inherit at least $1 million. The victim is then asked to send personal information which is used to con them out of their money.
“Most people laugh at the thought of falling for such a fraud, but law enforcement officials report annual losses of millions of dollars to these schemes,” a police report said.
In Ridgewood variants of this scam seem to be rampant and many residents continue to fall for them.
Ridgewood NJ, Simply put, the situation involving Parkmobile constitutes a blatant case of FRAUD.
Officers of Parkmobile convinced elected officials to adopt a formal resolution that approved the signing of a contract with their company. The adopted resolution stated in plain English that the Village would not be charged in any way, shape, or form. All costs were to be paid for by users on a per transaction basis. Then, Parkmobile somehow convinced former Village Manager Roberta Sonenfeld to sign a contract granting Parkmobile a percentage of the parking revenue from every transaction involving their app.
Bait and switch, plain and simple. One bill of goods was sold to the Council, another was sold to Roberta Sonenfeld.
FRAUD I say. I maintain the contract is invalid because it is in direct conflict with what our elected officials were told, and what they approved via resolution.
I’m about to call up that attorney who is handling the case against the Board of Education (Rosemarie Aronold of Fort Lee) and ask her to file a class action suit against Parkmobile for triple damages, court costs, and attorney’s fees.
Hackemsack NJ, The Bergen County Sheriff’s Office has been receiving reports of an attempted criminal scam where people are being contacted via telephone by someone claiming to be a member of our agency asking for money to satisfy a warrant for contempt of a Grand Jury appearance. The Bergen County Sheriff’s Office DOES NOT ask for money over the phone. Do not give anyone claiming to be a member of the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office any payment over the phone
Ridgewood NJ, The Ridgewood Police Department would like to remind all citizens of the increased amount of scams occurring and specifically the scams involving computer cleaning or any that request payments over the phone with the use of gift cards. Always investigate the communications made through postal mail, telephone, and/or the internet to prevent fraud and deceptive activity. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Ridgewood Police Department to ensure you’re not becoming a victim of these scams.
On September 29, a South Pleasant Avenue resident reported being the victim of a fraud in the past. The victim reported discovering a suspicious email which attempted to confirm a fraudulent credit card purchase. The email hyperlink attempted to obtain her personal information as well as her credit card number. The victim reported she cancelled her credit card after reporting the incident to her credit card company.
A Sterling Place resident responded to Ridgewood Police headquarters on September 27, to report fraud and theft of impersonation in the past. The victim reported an unknown actor did use the victim’s identity to open and access several accounts without authorization. The Ridgewood Detective Bureau is investigating the incidents.
Ridgewood NJ, New Jersey has a long and proud history of public corruption. A dozen Garden State mayors who have been forced to resign over the past decade due to criminal convictions. Mostly Democrats (10) ,but a few Republicans trying to get in on the action .
Paterson Mayor Jose “Joey” Torres, a Democrat, pleaded guilty on Friday to conspiracy to commit official misconduct for having employees with the Department of Public Works perform work for the mayor and his family members while bilking the city out of overtime. Torres follows a long line of Mayoral criminality .
Passaic Mayor Alex Blanco, a Democrat, was sentenced in April to more than two years in prison after pleading guilty to a federal bribery charge for soliciting $110,000 in bribes from developers in exchange for sending federal housing funds their way.
Passaic Mayor Samuel “Sammy” Rivera, a Democrat, pleaded guilty in 2008 to extortion for accepting $5,000 in cash from an insurance brokerage firm. Rivera, who was among 11 public officials swept up in a statewide FBI sting, was sentenced to 21 months in prison.
Newark Mayor Sharpe James, a Democrat, was convicted in 2008 on federal fraud and conspiracy charges for helping a woman described as his mistress buy nine plots in a city redevelopment zone, among other acts of wrongdoing. James was sentenced to 27 months in prison.
Trenton Mayor Tony Mack, a Democrat, was sentenced in May 2014 to nearly five years in prison in connection with a $119,000 bribery scheme linked to a parking garage project operated by FBI informants.
Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo, a Democrat, was released from prison in December 2014 after serving more than 18 months in federal prison. He was sentenced to 38 months in prison for accepting $12,400 in bribes from Marliese Ljuba, a close friend and health insurance broker for the school district.
Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammaranno, a Democrat, was among 44 people swept up in Operation Bid Rig. Cammarano, who’d been in office for only 22 days before his arrest, was sentenced in August 2010 to two years in prison, and later disbarred.
Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell, a Democrat, was sentenced in April 2012 to two-and-a-half years in prison after he was convicted of accepting $10,000 in cash through a middleman from Solomon Dwek, as part of Operation Bid Rig. Elwell, who resigned from his position shortly after his arrest, later lost an appeal challenging his conviction.
Northvale Mayor Paul Bazela, a Democrat and a former foreman for the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission, pleaded guilty to theft in March 2016 to having his workers perform renovations at the home of the commission’s former superintendent, Kevin Keogh, while on agency time. He was sentenced to three years in prison.
Guttenberg Mayor David Delle Donna, a Democrat, and his wife were each sentenced in 2008 to more than four years in prison for accepting more than $40,000 in gifts and cash campaign contributions from a local bar owner.
Of coarse Democrats don’t have all the fun ;
Manalapan Mayor Andrew Lucas, a Republican, was sentenced to five years in prison for fraud in connection with a $1.2 million farm deal. Convicted on charges of wire fraud, an illegal monetary transaction, loan application fraud, false statements to the IRS, aggravated identity theft, obstruction of a grand jury investigation and falsification of records in a federal investigation.
Chesterfield Mayor Lawrence Durr, a Republican, was sentenced in April 2016 to four years probation after he admitted to filing false ethics disclosure forms that failed to disclose his financial relationship with a real estate developer. Durr was accused in an indictment of selling development rights on his farm to Renaissance Properties at a profit and then using his official positions to advance the company’s interests in Chesterfield.
Ridgewood NJ, The mainstream media is conspicuously ignoring a newsworthy class-action lawsuit accusing the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and the Florida congresswoman—Debbie Wasserman Schultz—who chaired it of fraud for skewing the party’s primaries to benefit Hillary Clinton. The drama is playing out in a south Florida federal court where 150 Democratic voters and donors are also accusing their party and Wasserman Schultz of breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, unjust enrichment, and negligent misrepresentation for secretly helping Clinton get the presidential nomination over Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
“Despite the requirements in the Charter, and in spite of the multiple public declarations of neutrality and impartiality with respect to the Democratic primary process, the DNC was not neutral,” a 35-page complaint states. “To the contrary, the DNC was biased in favor of one candidate – Hillary Clinton (“Clinton”) – from the beginning and throughout the process. The DNC devoted its considerable resources to supporting Clinton above any of the other Democratic candidates. Through its public claims to being neutral and impartial, the DNC actively concealed its bias from its own donors as well as donors to the campaigns of Clinton’s rivals, including Bernie Sanders (“Sanders”).
The scandal broke when leaked DNC electronic mail showed that the committee favored and backed Clinton instead of Sanders during the primary. Wasserman Schultz resigned in disgrace as DNC chair, was publicly blasted by Sanders supporters and didn’t gavel in the party convention last summer in Philadelphia. Her hometown newspaper wrote that it was a hurricane-force controversy over leaked emails that showed the DNC under Wasserman Schultz was helping Clinton while Sanders was still a contender for the Democratic presidential nomination. In the article, the veteran congresswoman from Broward County, Florida indicated that she stepped down as DNC chair to focus on “making sure that everyone knows that Hillary Clinton would make the best president.”
Democrats suing her insist that the congresswoman violated DNC’s charter and bylaws that say party chair “shall exercise impartiality and evenhandedness” and “shall be responsible for ensuring that the officers and staff of the DNC maintain impartiality and evenhandedness.” Wasserman Schultz also made public declarations vowing to run a neutral primary, according to the lawsuit, while she and the DNC pushed for Clinton from the start of the 2016 presidential election cycle. The complaint cites a leaked internal DNC document dated May 26, 2015 listing a plan to provide a contrast between “GOP field and HRC [Hillary Rodham Clinton]” as well the use of “specific hits to muddy the waters around ethics, transparency and campaign finance attacks on HRC.” The DNC and Wasserman Schultz had actual knowledge of the wrongfulness of the conduct, the lawsuit says, adding that the conduct was so reckless it constituted a conscious disregard to the rights of the plaintiffs.
In the absence of media interest, the attorneys representing the class, a husband-and-wife team from Miami that supported Sanders, created a website where all documents related to the case are posted as well as courtroom illustrations and information on hearings. The docket is extensive and dates back to June 2016 when the complaint was filed. This is a valuable tool because, unlike state cases, federal court records are not available to the public for free and must be purchased through the government’s online system known as Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER). The database is most commonly used by attorneys and journalists (though not in this case) to research federal criminal, civil and bankruptcy cases. Having access to dozens of documents related to this case is a true bonus, especially since there’s been no local or national media coverage.
The most recent activity in this ongoing political legal drama occurred just weeks ago when plaintiffs and their lawyers filed a motion seeking court-ordered security guards after being harassed and intimidated. Weird emails and phone calls as well as a break-in at a plaintiff’s Dassel, Minnesota home were cited in the motion. The Ft. Lauderdale-based judge, a Reagan appointee, denied the request because plaintiffs live in dozens of different states and it would require the entire United States Marshals Service to direct all of its efforts and attention to this specific case. “For their part, defendants deny any role in the incidents described in plaintiff’s motion,” the judge, William Zloch, wrote in his order. The saga continues and Judicial Watch will monitor it and report pertinent developments.
In the meantime, Wasserman Schultz is embroiled in another major scandal involving her top information technology aide, Imran Awan, who was recently arrested on bank-fraud charges at the airport while trying to flee to his native Pakistan. Awan had just wired $283,000 from the Congressional Federal Credit Union to Pakistan, according to a news report, and he had been fired by other members of Congress after getting busted stealing computers and data systems months earlier. For unknown reasons, Wasserman Schultz kept Awan, whose entire family is embroiled in a major scam, and he had access to her emails and files as well as the password to the electronic device the congresswoman used for DNC business before she was booted out last summer. Wasserman Schultz’s gatekeepers are shielding the notoriously media savvy politician from the media and a Florida newspaper points out that “the Weston Democrat has not explained why she continued to employ Awan,” until his arrest. Judicial Watch has launched an investigation and is pursuing public records.
Hillsdale NJ, we have to laugh Congressman Josh Gottheimer gathered local business leaders for a roundtable on the Export-Import Bank with Former Chairman and President of the Export-Import Bank, Fred Hochberg. Hosted by Fornazor International, Inc., the group shared Export-Import Bank success stories and discussed ways that small- and medium-sized New Jersey manufacturers can leverage the opportunities afforded by the bank to expand their businesses .
Perhaps no one told Congressman Gottheimer that the Export-Import Bank is one of the most corrupt organizations in Washington and often referred as nothing more than corporate welfare .
A Gottheimer press release In New Jersey, this program has supported, $4,039,300,000 in exports, 25,811 jobs, and 219 companies — without costing the Treasury a single nickel. Congressman Gottheimer views Ex-Im as a great return on investment for the district, state, and country.
The reality is far different the Export Import Bank is nothing but corrupt corporate welfare. The 81-year old, government agency, the Export Import Bank cost taxpayers millions of dollars each year and it overwhelmingly benefitted big corporations and big banks. (Beware, incompetent government protocols allow for wild variations in costs). Recently, 42 Republicans and 176 Democrats forced a vote in the House of Representatives to reauthorize the bank.
Originally, the Export Import Bank (ExIm) was created in the 1930’s to assist small businesses unable to acquire private, bank loans. In 2012, Boeing received 83% of its loan guarantees through the Export Import Bank. Not to mention, Chase, Citibank and other big banks are essentially receiving risk-free loans from our government bank. What happened? Inevitably, a government subsidy attracts big businesses with powerful lobbyists to convert the program to their advantage. This happened and was the reason small government conservatives demanded an end to the ImEx.
Thus, upon losing their enormous government subsidies, big businesses and well-paid lobbyists are working hard to convince Members of Congress to reauthorize and fund the bank. According to Veronique de Rugy of the Mercatus Center, between 2007 and 2013 the Bank subsidized:
· $66.7 billion in sales by Boeing
· $8.3 billion for General Electric
· $5.2 billion for Bechtel
· $4.9 billion for Caterpillar and its subsidiary Solar Turbine
· $3.2 billion for CBI Americas
· $3.0 for Exxon Mobil
· $2.1 billion for Applied Materials
· $2.0 billion for Westinghouse
· $1.4 billion for Noble Drilling
In 2014 the left of center “HILL” wrote a very critical article on the banks dealings with Russia and what it called rampant fraud at the bank, ” In late July, the bank scrambled to halt their dealings with Russian companies, a week after the awkward news that the Obama administration had sanctioned some of the Bank’s previous Russian “customers” with close ties to Vladimir Putin.
Around the same time, the bank’s president, Fred Hochberg, was hauled before Congress to address concerns about rampant fraud at his institution after three employees were dismissed following allegations of corruption. Also called to testify was Johnny Gutierrez, himself one of the recently-dismissed bank officials. Gutierrez pled the Fifth Amendment and Hochberg’s testimony was less than illuminating. In addition, a recent report in The Daily Caller found several instances of conflicts of interest among members of the bank’s own advisory committee.”
The Export-Import Bank is backed by powerful corporate interests and corrupt politicians who make a living off of all the dirty deals .
Lakewood NJ, Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph D. Coronato and State Comptroller Philip James Degnan announced today the first of multiple ongoing arrests within Lakewood, New Jersey by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office for defrauding Medicaid and government assistance programs. The investigations initiated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Red Bank Office and the New Jersey Office of the State Comptroller – Medicaid Fraud Division, were expanded to include the US Social Security Administration, New Jersey Department of the Treasury – Office of Criminal Investigation, and the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office – Economic Crimes Unit. Today’s initial arrests include charges of collecting $1.3 million in illegal benefits.
Prosecutor Coronato stated, “Financial assistance programs are designed to alleviate family hardships for those truly in need. My office gave clear guidance and notice to the Lakewood community in 2015 of what is considered financial abuse of these programs. Those who choose to ignore those warnings by seeking to illegally profit on the backs of taxpayers will pay the punitive price of their actions.”
OCPO detectives/prosecutors, along with its collaborating agencies, began the first phase of the operation by arresting two married couples. Mordechai, 37, and Jocheved, 35, Breskin of Blue Jay Way in Lakewood, were arrested and charged with 2nd Degree Theft by Deception for wrongfully collecting approximately $585,662 in Medicaid, SNAP, HUD and SSI benefits between January 2009 thru December 2014. Zalmen, 39, and Tzipporah, 35, Sorotzkin of Olive Court collecting approximately $338,642 in Medicaid, SNAP, HUD and SSI benefits between January 2009 and April 2014. A Detention Hearing is scheduled for 1:30 pm today at Ocean County Superior Court.
The nature of the criminal events investigated and basic charges allege that the defendants misrepresented their income, declaring amounts that were low enough to receive the program’s benefits, when in fact their income was too high to qualify. The investigations revealed that the defendants’ received income from numerous sources that they failed to disclose on required program applications. As a result, they received benefits that they were not entitled to under these programs for themselves or family members.
“This operation highlights the success of federal, state and county cooperation in New Jersey’s effort to combat Medicaid and other government benefits fraud,” State Comptroller Degnan said. “My office will continue to ensure that only individuals and families truly in need of benefits receive them, and that those who choose to steal from New Jersey taxpayers are referred for prosecution.”
The Ocean County Prosecutors Office is prosecuting the above arrested individuals at the state level. The Federal Bureau of Investigations arrested four additional individuals as a part of its’ role in the comprehensive review of financial assistance programs. Information regarding the FBI facilitated arrests continues below:
Rachel Sorotzkin, 32, and Mordechai Sorotzkin, 35, are charged by complaint with one count of conspiring to steal government funds. Yocheved Nussbaum, 40, and Shimon Nussbaum, 42, also of Lakewood, are charged in a separate complaint with one count of conspiring to steal government funds. The Sorotzkins and the Nussbaums, all of Lakewood, are expected to make their appearances this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Douglas E. Arpert in Trenton federal court.
According to the complaints:
From 2011 through 2014, Rachel and Mordechai Sorotzkin applied for and received Medicaid health insurance benefits for themselves and their children. After being approved for Medicaid benefits in August of 2011, the Sorotzkins received significant windfalls – including a lump sum payment of $1 million from Rachel Sorotzkin’s business in April of 2013 – which they failed to report to Medicaid officials. Despite earning in excess of $1 million in each of the 2012 and 2013 calendar years, the Sorotzkins continued to use their Medicaid cards, ultimately defrauding the government of approximately $96,000 in taxpayer-funded medical care.
In a separate scheme, Yocheved and Shimon Nussbaum applied for and received public benefits for themselves and their children from 2011 through 2014, despite their significant income. In the years prior to and during the conspiracy, the Nussbaums created a variety of companies that were nominally run by relatives but were actually controlled by the Nussbaums.
They opened various bank accounts in the names of these companies and used funds from these accounts to cover personal expenses.
In applying for Medicaid, Section 8 housing, and SNAP food benefits, the Nussbaums grossly underreporting their true income by failing to include the income from these business accounts. Despite annual income of up to as high as approximately $1.8 million in 2013, the Nussbaums continued to receive taxpayer-funded health, housing and food benefits through August of 2014, ultimately defrauding the government of approximately $178,000.
The conspiracy counts each carry a maximum potential penalty of up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense.
Acting U.S. Attorney Fitzpatrick in his press release credited special agents with the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark; the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph D. Coronato; the New Jersey Office of the State Comptroller, under the direction of State Comptroller Philip James Degnan; the New Jersey Department of the Treasury – Office of Criminal Investigation; under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Charles Giblin; Social Security Administration – Office of the Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge John Grasso; and criminal investigators of the U.S. Attorney’s Office with the investigation leading to today’s arrests.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Molly S. Lorber of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Trenton.
The investigation by all the participating agencies is continuing and additional arrests are forthcoming. OCPO and our prosecuting partners may add additional relevant charges (ie. Tax charges) as each case proceeds through the legal process. Anyone with any information is asked to contact Sergeant Mark Malinowski of the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office at (732) 929-2027.
The media and the public are reminded that criminal charges are only allegations and that each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court. See Photos below courtesy the Ocean County Jail:
BRESKIN, MORTECHAI DOVID
BRESKIN, JOCHEVED ALIZA
SOROTZKIN, ZALMEN
SOROTZKIN, TZIPPORAH
Ocean County Prosecutors office announced on June 28th that, along with its collaborating agencies, continued Monday’s operation by arresting the following three married couples. Hearings are scheduled for 1:30 pm today (6/28) at Ocean County Superior Court.
Yitzchock, 33, and Sora, 39, Kanarek of Brisk Lane – charged with 2nd Degree Theft by Deception for wrongfully collecting approximately $339,002.56 in Medicaid, SNAP, HUD, and SSI benefits between January 2009 and July 2014.
Chaim, 40, and Liatt, 39, Ehrman of Twin Oaks Drive – charged with 2nd Degree Theft by Deception for wrongfully collecting approximately $185,692.22 in Medicaid, SNAP, HEAP, and Sandy benefits between January 2011 and December 2015
William, 45, and Faigy, 40, Friedman of Leigh Drive – charged with 2nd Degree Theft by Deception for wrongfully collecting approximately $149,842.28 in Medicaid, SNAP, HEAP, and HUDbenefits between January 2011 and December 2015.
The media and public are reminded that criminal charges are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Follow the Office of the Ocean County Prosecutor online at Twitter and Facebook. The social media links provided are for reference only. The OCPO does not endorse any non-governmental websites, companies or applications. For additional information visit our website at www.oceancountyprosecutor.org. Please send all press inquiries to Al Della Fave 732-288-7616 (OFFICE) 732-814-7347 (CELL) and adellafave@co.ocean.nj.us.
Newark NJ, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Newark Field Office arrested 113 criminal targets during an operation Jun. 5-9, as part of the agency’s ongoing public safety and national security efforts. The operation was supported by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s New Jersey Field Office, the New Jersey State Parole Office, and ICE Homeland Security Investigations.
All of the targets in this operation were criminal in nature. 93% of those that were arrested were convicted criminals and 87% of them had prior felony convictions.
“The continued results of our Fugitive Operations officers and their law enforcement partners underscore ICE’s ongoing and steady commitment to public safety,” said John Tsoukaris, field office director of ERO Newark. “As part of this operation, we continue focus on the arrest of individuals who are criminal and are a threat to public safety and national security. Because of the tireless efforts of these professional officers, there are 113 fewer criminals in our communities,” he added.
“U.S. Customs and Border Protection is extremely proud to have assisted in this operation,” said Leon Hayward, Acting Director New York Field Office. “It is through collaborative efforts, such as the one leading to today’s arrests, that law enforcement agencies can combat illegal acts and apprehend criminals who pose a threat to the Homeland.”
“The State Parole Board is pleased to have been able to take part in this very successful fugitive operation. Cooperative efforts with other state and federal agencies serve as a force multiplier resulting in a significant public safety benefit. We are proud of the efforts of our parole officers and all that took part in the operation.” said James T. Plousis, chairman of the NJ State Parole Board.
The individuals arrested throughout New Jersey were nationals of Bangladesh, Central African Republic, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Ghana, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Iraq, Ireland, Jamaica, Jordan, Korea, Latvia, Liberia, Mexico, Morocco, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Peru, Poland, Slovakia, Trinidad and Uruguay.
These individuals range from age 18 to 74 years old and all were previously convicted of a variety of offenses. Some of the convictions included sexual assault on a minor, child abuse, possession of narcotics, distribution of narcotics, robbery, trespassing, damage to property, DUI, crimes against person, fraud, sex offense against a child/fondling, threaten to kill, sexual exploitation of a minor, domestic violence, battery, theft of us government property, possession of a weapon, illegal use of credit cards, burglary, larceny, aggravated assault and illegal reentry.
Among those arrested during this operation include:
A Iraqi citizen convicted of possession of narcotics A Honduran citizen wanted by Honduras for the offense of double Homicide A Latvian citizen convicted of heroin sale A El Salvador citizen convicted of sexual exploitation of a minor A Ecuadorian citizen convicted of sexual exploitation of a minor A Jordanian citizen convicted of synthetic narcotic possession A Dominican citizen convicted of cocaine sale A Bangladesh citizen convicted of aggravated assault with a weapon
In fiscal year 2016, ICE conducted 240,255 removals nationwide. Over ninety percent of individuals removed from the interior of the United States had previously been convicted of a criminal offense.
ICE is focused on smart, effective immigration enforcement that targets serious criminal aliens who present the greatest risk to the security of our communities, such as those charged with or convicted of homicide, rape, robbery, kidnapping, major drug offenses and threats to national security.
ERO Newark works closely with federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to enforce federal immigration laws as part of its homeland security mission.
Ridgewood NJ, Do you have any relatives over age 65? Have they been warned about the grandma scam?
Here’s how the grandma scam works: A call from a younger person is made to the targeted older person, often at night, after the aging person is asleep. Half awake, grandma answers the phone and the scammer claims to be the grandchild who says he’s in trouble and he needs financial help. Grandma is concerned and wires cash to the scammer. It often times takes days until she realizes she has been scammed.
What’s the takeaway: Your relatives can be easily tricked under the right circumstances. Wanting a call from grandkids is the starting point for scammers and they are triggered by an emotional response to the plea for help.
Millions of dollars are lost this way, in smaller amounts at a time. One way to combat the scam is to be prepared to ask the caller a question only a real grandchild would know: the name of a pet, a parent’s birth date or a nickname.
That’s where Carolyn Rosenblatt, a registered nurse and elder law attorney, and Dr. Mikol Davis, a geriatric psychologist, come in. Rosenblatt and Davis, co-authors of The Family Guide to Aging Parents: Answers to Your Legal, Financial, and Healthcare Questions (www.agingparents.com) and Succeed with Senior Clients: A Financial Advisor’s Guide to Best Practices (www.aginginvestor.com), can provide comments for articles you are working on or write exclusive articles on this topic for your publication.
PSE&G teams with more than 80 North American utilities to stop scams
November 15th 2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, According to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, more than 3 million consumers filed fraud complaints last year. Phone scams are among the most common complaints. To combat these con artists, Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G), New Jersey’s largest utility, joined forces with more than 80 energy companies across North America to educate people how to spot a scam. The collaborative designated the third Wednesday in November
“Utilities United Against Scams Day.”
How the most common payment scam works:
Someone pretending to be a utility employee calls and threatens shut-off within an hour if they do not receive immediate payment via a prepaid card.
Victims are given a phony phone number to call back after they purchase the cards from a retail store.
When the customer calls back, they may hear voice response prompts that mimic those they would hear when calling a real customer service line. Some of these criminals use caller ID spoofing technology to replicate PSE&G’s number.
A fake representative asks for the numbers on the prepaid card or receipt. Within seconds the money is gone.
Scam red flags:
The caller becomes angry and aggressive, telling the customer his or her account is past due and service will be disconnected if a large payment isn’t made – often within less than an hour.
The thief specifically demands the customer pay with a prepaid card or wire transfer.
“If a caller directs you to go to a local store to purchase a prepaid card to pay your bill, it is likely a scam,” said Greg Dunlap, PSE&G vice president of customer operations. “If you receive a call and are in doubt, hang up and call us at the phone number listed on our website or your PSE&G bill.”
The only way to protect against these scams is for customers to be cautious. Before terminating service, PSE&G alerts customers in a number of ways: messages on their bill, letters and phone calls. While the utility accepts credit cards, prepaid cards and money transfers to pay bills, PSE&G would never demand a specific type of payment and threaten immediate service termination.
“Hiding behind an untraceable phone, scammers know it is doubtful they’ll be caught,” said Dunlap. “By educating people how to spot a scam, our Utilities United collaborative aims to spare many would-be victims and make the thieves’ underhanded jobs a lot harder.”
Report all scam attempts by calling your utility and local police department, and file a complaint with the FTC at www.ftc.gov/complaint.
Hackensack NJ, The Attorney General Christopher Porrino and U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman have been formally notified of Josh Gottheimer’s deliberate and fraudulent alteration of a government document by the Office of Congressional Ethics in a desperate attempt to mislead the public.
The actions by the Gottheimer campaign violated both state and federal laws including 18 U.S.C. 1001 (false or fraudulent statement or document within the jurisdiction of the legislative branch of the Government of the United States), 18 U.S.C. 912 (impersonating any department or agency of the U.S.), §2C:21-1 (forgery) and §2C:21-4 (falsifying or tampering with records).
Gottheimer’s campaign admitted his forgery to the Star-Ledger: “An official with the Gottheimer campaign confirmed that it had produced the ad and manipulated the image.”
Yesterday, the billboards propping up the lies from the Gottheimer campaign were swiftly pulled.
The story, as originally recounted by James V. Grimaldi and Rebecca Ballhaus of The Wall Street Journal, was, of itself, deeply troubling. In March 2009, after meeting with Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey, then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton intervened with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on behalf of Switzerland’s most powerful banking institution, UBS. The IRS, which at that time was seeking the identity of wealthy Americans who had stashed some $20 billion in 52,000 tax evading UBS accounts, then agreed that the Swiss bank need only turn over information on 4,450 accounts. Afterwards, UBS increased its previous $60,000 in donations to the Clinton Foundation ten-fold. By the end of 2014, UBS donations to the Clinton Foundation totaled $600,000. UBS also “paid former President Bill Clinton $1.5 million to participate in a series of question-and-answer sessions with UBS Wealth Management Chief Executive Bob McCann, making UBS his biggest single corporate source of speech income disclosed since he left the White House.”
Those facts, of themselves, raise disturbing questions. Did a bank that still ranks as “the world’s biggest wealth manager” and has at its disposal a bevy of economists and law firms have a legitimate reason for paying Bill Clinton $1.5 million in speaking fees? Or was the $1.5 million and the tenfold increase in Clinton Foundation donations a reward for the former secretary of State’s intervention? If the latter, that reward would have, under federal law (18 U.S.C. § 201(c)(1)(A)), amounted to an illicit bribe.
When in doubt, hang up and call the number listed on your bill
September 16,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G), New Jersey’s largest utility, is urging customers to be alert to scams demanding immediate bill payment via a pre-paid card.
“During the last several days, we’ve seen an uptick in the number of phone scams being reported,” said Greg Dunlap, vice president of Customer Operations for PSE&G. “Scammers can – and do – target anyone. But they tend to more often target small business customers, because they have larger bills than residential customers, but don’t have all of the checks and balances to prevent fraud that large business customers typically have.”
Here is how this latest payment scam works:
An individual pretending to be a PSE&G employee calls a customer and tells them that without immediate payment via a pre-paid card, their service will be shut off.
Customers are given a telephone number to call back after they have purchased the card. When they call that number, they hear interactive voice response prompts that imitate those they would hear when calling the real PSE&G customer service line.
When a fake representative answers the line, they ask for the number on the back of the pre-paid card. After the scammers have that number, they can take the money from the card – usually within a matter of minutes.
The only way to protect against these scams is for customers to be cautious when contacted by someone threatening service termination if they do not receive immediate payment via a pre-paid credit card. Before terminating service, PSE&G alerts customers in a number of ways: messages on their bill, letters and phone calls. The utility offers a number of payment options, and would never require a customer to use one specific type of payment.
“If you receive a call from anyone demanding immediate payment, do not give them any personal or account information,” said Dunlap. “Hang up the phone, and call the number listed on PSE&G’s website and bills: 1-800-436-PSEG (7734).”
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