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Our mission is to expose and remedy corruption in the Probate Court of Cook County, Illinois. We assist, educate and enlighten families of the dead, the dying, the disabled and the aged to better understand their rights in order to protect themselves from the excesses of the Probate Court of Cook County. ProbateSharks.com is dedicated to networking the human element of people to people. We join together in reforming the corrupt Cook County Probate Court system.

Showing posts with label identity theft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label identity theft. Show all posts

Friday, March 18, 2016

2 Former Finance Professionals Charged With Exploiting Seniors

money, cash, 1s, ones, dollar bills, generic
(credit: Jupiter Images)
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – State commerce officials are advising senior citizens and their families to be vigilant over their bank accounts after two former finance professionals were charged with exploiting senior clients.
Fifty-four-year-old Paul Bardine, of Minnetrista, and 45-year-old John Heath, of Edina, are charged in separate cases, but each faces a count of theft by swindle.
In addition, Bardine is also accused of insurance fraud, as well as stealing more than $270,000 from several clients, including a 79-year-old woman and couple in their 70s.
Heath faces an additional count of identity theft in a case where he’s accused of stealing more than $220,000 from an 88-year-old client with Alzheimer’s disease.
“These cases are a distressing reminder that seniors are often targeted for financial exploitation, and this threat is expected to grow as the senior population itself grows,” said Minnesota Commerce Commissioner Mike Rothman, in a statement. “I encourage Minnesota seniors to closely monitor their finances, talk with family members and contact the Commerce Department if anything seems suspicious.”
Authorities say Bardine was a former insurance agent who persuaded several clients to cash out annuities he’d sold them and invest in one of his companies. Bardine then used the money for personal expenses.
As for Heath, a former financial adviser, authorities say he cashed out an annuity owned by his client with Alzheimer’s disease by posing as him in official documents.
Anyone who believes they might be victims of Bardine and Heath is asked to call the Minnesota Commerce Fraud Bureau at 651-539-1617
Posted by Probate Shark at 6:42 AM 0 comments
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Sunday, September 27, 2015

Prattville caregiver steals cancer patient's identity

Prattville caregiver steals cancer patient's identity

 
Posted: Sep 24, 2015 9:57 PM CDT Updated: Sep 24, 2015 10:48 PM CDT

 
(Source: WSFA 12 News)(Source: WSFA 12 News)

AUTAUGA CO., AL (WSFA) - An Autauga County woman has learned her fate after stealing the identity of the elderly cancer patient she was hired to care for.
Sherry Walters was sentenced this week on charges of identity theft and financial exploitation of an elderly person.
The victim was identified as an 82-year-old Prattville man who is a disabled veteran.
“She had been a caregiver in the victim's residence. He was an elderly cancer patient. While caring for him in his residence, she gained access to his identifying information and was able to use his personal information for her personal benefit,” said Jessica Sanders, Assistant District Attorney with Alabama’s 19th Judicial Circuit.
Prosecutors say Walters used the victim's identifying information over a period of six months during a time when he was traveling out of state for cancer treatments.
Walters was placed on 18 months of supervised probation after receiving a suspended prison sentence. She was fined and ordered to pay restitution.
“This type of crime that occurs with someone who you trust to care for you and work in your residence does cause you to feel violated. I think they were disappointed that she could have done this or that she would have done this and they were disappointed to have been placed in this situation at all,” Sanders added.
John Matson with the Alabama Nursing Home Association says elder abuse can take many forms, including physical and mental abuse as well as financial exploitation.
He pointed out that in-home care is different from nursing homes and assisted living facilities where there are many people every day, including employees, other residents and volunteers. If something does happen in one of those locations, it's often much more easily spotted and much more quickly reported.
When it comes to hiring an in-home caregiver, he recommends using an established company.
“If you do go the route of hiring someone on your own or maybe placing an ad in a newspaper or somewhere to find someone to take care of your loved one at home, it's important to do a background check, specifically a criminal background check. You will want to get several references and follow up on those references. Those things can help give you a little peace of mind as you get to know this new caregiver for your loved one,” Matson explained.
He stressed to importance of reporting abuse or neglect to local authorities.
Alabama prosecutors say they are seeing more elder abuse cases because the number of people 60 and over in Alabama and across the nation continues to increase and because of new statutes geared at fighting crimes against the elderly.
In Autauga County, Sanders says around five cases of elder abuse have been prosecuted this year. In early 2016, a high profile elder abuse case is set to go to trial involving Glen Glassmeyer, who police and prosecutors say conned a Prattville woman in her 80s out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.  According to authorities, Glassmeyer weaseled his way into the victim’s life acting as a caretaker and they formed a relationship. He later gained power of attorney, putting his name on her accounts and transferring money into them, Assistant Chief Diane Hamm revealed after his arrest. He also allegedly made different purchases and was trying to get the victim to buy him a house. Glassmeyer even married the victim.
Last week, an Alabama woman who admitted to stealing an elderly dementia patient's identity and using it to steal her money was sentenced to four years and nine months in prison.
Shostocka Keya Ward, 43, stole more than $300,000 from the victim's bank and credit accounts when Ward worked at a senior citizens living center in Hoover.
According to Ward's guilty plea, she wrote more than $70,000 in unauthorized checks to herself and used the victim's credit cards to finance her wedding, someone's prison account, private school tuition payments and trips.
The Montgomery County District Attorney's Office has prosecuted eight cases this year where defendants were charged with financial exploitation of an elderly person and one case of elderly physical abuse. Another 8-10 are in varying stages in the criminal process. A majority of the financial cases have involved in-home caregivers, either family or contract.
Seth Gowan, Deputy District Attorney with Alabama's 15th Judicial Circuit and and member of the Montgomery County Elder Justice Task Force, says the number of complaints of elder financial exploitation per year has steadily increased since the Protecting Alabama’s Elders Act was passed. He added that the aging population, as well as the public awareness effort by the District Attorney's Office and the Montgomery County Elder Justice Task Force partners, and the training law enforcement and prosecutors have received regarding the new law have resulted in more focused attention.
Task force officials suggest that when it comes to using businesses and services that provide in-home health care assistance to seniors, you should ask about the employees being paid through the business, not directly by the senior and/or family.
"Regardless, you need to make sure the person has been vetted as much as possible, having good references and work history," Gowan added.
Other tips and things to look for include:
- The caregiver should never be allowed to become familiar or know about senior's financial affairs, ie., where the checkbook is, credit, debit cards, etc.
- Always be cautious and guarded with financial information and personal identifying information such as date of birth and social security number.
- If the caregiver is asking for extra money, to borrow money or help paying bills, these can be red flags and opportunities for the elderly person to quickly become a victim.
Contact the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office at 832-2550 or the One Place Family Justice Center at 262-7378 with any questions or concerns.
There are other agencies that can assist seniors and/or their family including:
  • Central Alabama Aging Consortium, 240-4666 
  • Montgomery Area Council on Aging, 263-0352 
  • DHR Adult Protective Services, 293-3100
  • Alabama Department of Senior Services, 877-425-2243 
Posted by Probate Shark at 7:28 AM 0 comments
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Thursday, November 6, 2014

SEC bars for 5 years two R.I. brokers for roles in scheme that exploited the terminally ill

Editor's note:  This Shark does not see the SEC pounding on the doors of the Probate Court of Cook County.  These probate criminals pillaged the securities of Alice R. Gore and nobody seems to care; not the FEDs; not the SEC; not the IARDC; just nobody!  Lucius Verenus, Schoolmaster,  ProbateSharks.com


SEC bars for 5 years two R.I. brokers for roles in scheme that exploited the terminally ill
Published: October 18, 2014 11:15 PM

 7  11 +10  0  1  4
kmulvane@providencejournal.com
Published: October 18 2014 11:15

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last week barred Edward L. Maggiacomo Jr. and Edward J. Hanrahan from working in the securities industry for five years for their roles as brokers in an investment scheme that exploited terminally ill Rhode Islanders.
The SEC issued orders temporarily barring Maggiacomo, 50, of Warwick, and Hanrahan, 44, of West Warwick, from the industry for their complicity in convicted Cranston estate planner Joseph A. Caramadre’s scheme to steal and use the identities of terminally ill and elderly people to obtain $25 million in illicit gains.
“The SEC’s core mission is to protect the investing public and that includes keeping bad actors out of the industry,” Paul G. Levenson, director of the SEC’s Boston regional office, said Friday.
Maggiacomo and Hanrahan agreed to the terms to settle SEC charges that they offered and sold variable annuities on Caramadre’s behalf as part of the scheme, according to the SEC.
“Caramadre was not registered as a broker, so he needed Hanrahan and Maggiacomo to help complete these crooked deals,” Levenson said. “In barring Hanrahan and Maggiacomo from the industry, we are looking to protect investors from two brokers who have demonstrated that they cannot be trusted in the industry.”
A federal grand jury indicted Caramadre, owner of Estate Planning Resources, and his employee, Raymour Radhakrishnan, in 2011 on 60-plus counts, including conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud, identity theft, aggravated identity theft and money laundering related to a complex investment strategy that targeted dozens of people, many with only months to live.
Maggiacomo and Hanranhan were later identified as unindicted coconspirators for assisting Caramadre in securing the investments. They were expected to testify at trial.

In November 2012, Caramadre and Radhakrishnan pleaded guilty to fraud and conspiracy, four days into trial.
U.S. District Chief Judge William E. Smith sentenced Caramadre to serve six years in prison. In addition, Smith ordered Caramadre to perform 1,000 hours of community service in hospice or palliative care.
Smith sentenced Radhakrishnan to a year and a day in prison. He, too, is to perform 1,000 hours of community service in hospice or palliative care.
Smith ordered Caramadre and Radhakrishnan to pay a total of $46.3 million in restitution.
Prosecutors portrayed Radhakrishnan as the person who misled the ill people, some on their death beds, into unwittingly signing documents. Those documents were then used to purchase investments on behalf of Caramadre’s clients. Caramadre’s investors profited upon the individual’s death or received a full return on their investment under the scheme.

Witnesses at trial, some testifying by video from hospital beds shortly before their death, told of receiving a few thousand dollars from Caramadre’s firm after signing papers that they didn’t understand.
According to the SEC order, Maggiacomo, too, spoke directly with terminally ill people and their families, and, in certain circumstances, paid them $2,000 to $5,000 in violation of SEC rules. He then required that they sign forms certifying that they had not received any compensation and that they understood the nature of the arrangement.
He and Maggiacomo also violated rules by brokering investment sales for Caramadre and then forwarding him a portion of their commissions, knowing that he was not a registered broker, the SEC order said.
According to the order, Maggiacomo earned $619,292 in ill-gotten commissions from the investments, $402,539 of which he gave to Caramadre. He was ordered to pay $216,752 plus $46,445 in interest, most of which he has already satisfied through payments to investors in a related civil lawsuit, according to the SEC.
Hanrahan’s order specifies that he received $483,187 in ill-gotten commissions, $399,837 that he gave to Caramadre. He was ordered to pay $83,349 plus $16,603 in interest, a sum he, too, previously paid through related civil lawsuits.
Anthony M. Traini, Maggiacomo’s lawyer, did not return a phone call seeking comment Friday. Hanrahan’s lawyer, John A. MacFadyen, III, could not be reached immediately.
On Twitter:  @kmulvane
Posted by Probate Shark at 6:19 AM 0 comments
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Monday, July 28, 2014

Man found guilty of defrauding elderly victims in SF

Man found guilty of defrauding elderly victims in SF 

By

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A man prosecutors said befriended elderly victims who suffered from dementia so he could take control of their properties was found guilty Thursday of eight felonies, District Attorney’s Office spokesman Max Szabo said in a statement Friday.
Gregory Wiggins, 53, targeted and befriended two elderly San Francisco residents who were suffering from dementia and attempted to take advantage of them, Szabo said. He was found guilty of grand theft, embezzlement, elder abuse, making false statements to a notary public, filing false documents and identity theft.
Both victims were under court-ordered conservatorships and Wiggins, who had multiple addresses at the time of his arrest, was repeatedly told by the conservators that he could not enter into any legal contracts with them.
In November 2005, Wiggins convinced one of the victims to add him as a joint tenant on the deed to the victim’s property, giving Wiggins sole ownership after the victim’s death. That deed, however, was nullified after attorneys for the conservatorship became involved.
After that went south, Wiggins targeted an elderly woman who also suffered from dementia, Szabo said. After gaining her trust, she turned over a large portion of her financial responsibilities to Wiggins.
In May 2006, the San Francisco Public Guardian’s office initiated conservatorship to help the victim and in November of that year, the conservatorship became permanent. Wiggins then moved fast to secure the victim’s property in Hercules.
On Nov. 20, 2006, Wiggins had the victim sign the property over to him and then moved to obtain a second mortgage on the property, stripping the property of its value, prosecutors said.
Then in January of 2007, Wiggins recorded a grant deed officially removing the victim from this property and a deed of trust taking the value out of the home, in hopes that he could walk away with the money from the home and avoid litigation similar to his first scam, Szabo said.
District Attorney George Gascón applauded the victims for their resolve in the length of time it took to pursue the case and bring Wiggins to justice.
“This man targeted elderly victims whose health precluded them from seeing through his deception,” Gascón said. “Preying on elderly individuals in an attempt to deprive them of their livelihood is malicious and foul.”
The District Attorney’s Office said it will be pursuing a significant state prison term for Wiggins, as well as restitution for the second victim.
Posted by Probate Shark at 6:34 AM 0 comments
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Sunday, July 27, 2014

St. Paul lawyer disbarred for theft, fraud

Editor's note: This Shark finds the IARDC's comments that nothing is wrong with two attorneys withholding the final documents of the Estate of Alice R. Gore from her daughter for over a year as standard IARDC procedure.  It appears that they may investigate the third attorney...who died earlier this month.  Why can't Illinois have some of this Minnesota type justice imported into the Probate Court of Cook County? I mean...we don't have a paucity of thieves in Illinois. Lucius Verenus, Schoolmaster, ProbateSharks.com

 

St. Paul lawyer disbarred for theft, fraud

  • Article by: DAVID CHANEN , Star Tribune
  • Updated: July 23, 2014 - 9:42 PM
Linda Brost stole $43,000 of client money and stole his identity.

 


 
A St. Paul attorney has been disbarred for stealing her client’s money and identity, the Minnesota Supreme Court said in an order Wednesday.
Linda Brost, 62, who now lives in Spooner, Wis., stole $43,000 and failed to cooperate in an investigation by the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility, which filed a disciplinary petition against her in December 2013.
Brost’s troubles started in 2009, when she was suspended indefinitely for using the expired notary stamp of a dead person to fraudulently notarize her own signature on a trust certificate for a client. She later submitted the document to a bank, the petition alleged.
Brost’s theft started with a will she drafted for Arthur Fischbach, who died Sept. 11, 2005. Around the time Fischbach died, Brost altered the date on her dead husband’s expired notary stamp and forged his signature to notarize her own signature on a certificate of trust prepared for Fischbach. After he died, she presented the fraudulently notarized document to BankCherokee in a failed effort to access Fischbach’s funds, which totaled about $140,000.
She also obtained $43,000 from Fischbach’s insurance company by making false statements and stealing his identity.
In March 2009, after learning of these events, the Minnesota Supreme Court indefinitely suspended Brost from practicing law. Brost then allegedly set up an e-mail account in Fischbach’s name and had his mail redirected to a house she owns in St. Paul. She also opened a checking account in his name in February 2011, six years after his death, and wrote letters purportedly from him as she tried to tap his money, authorities said.
Last year, criminal charges were filed against Brost for theft by swindle, identity theft, and aggravated forgery of a document and insurance fraud. She pleaded guilty.
In its order, the Supreme Court wrote that Brost’s misconduct harmed the public and legal profession in multiple ways.

David Chanen • 612-673-4465
Posted by Probate Shark at 7:20 AM 0 comments
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Friday, March 14, 2014

St. Louis-area lawyer indicted on fraud charge accused of stealing his mother's identity


St. Louis-area lawyer indicted on fraud charge accused of stealing his mother's identity

  • THE ASSOCIATED PRESS  
  • First Posted: March 13, 2014 - 1:30 pm
    Last Updated: March 13, 2014 - 1:31 pm



ST. LOUIS — A St. Louis County lawyer who went missing for more than four months amid mounting legal troubles is accused of stealing his mother's identity by enlisting a client to impersonate the woman.
Jeffrey M. Witt, 39, was arrested last week in New York after stepping off a Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul. He hasn't yet been returned to St. Louis to answer felony charges of bank fraud and aggravated identity theft.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (bit.ly/Na6hGJ ) reported Thursday that Witt relied on a client pretending to be his mother to take out a $100,000 loan using the deed on her Des Peres home as credit. Prosecutors say the client then endorsed a $60,000 check that Witt deposited into his office account but used for personal expenses.
Shortly before Witt went missing, Missouri's chief disciplinary counsel filed a 10-count complaint him that alleges that as far back as 2009, Witt had lied to clients and the court, missed deadlines and court hearings, mishandled money, failed to file necessary documents or improperly filed them and didn't tell clients that an employee was a disbarred former lawyer who was also a convicted felon.
Clayton police arrested Witt on Oct. 15, 2013, after he struck a vehicle while parking. He refused a blood test and was ticketed for driving under the influence. A week later, a St. Louis County judge entered an almost $1 million malpractice judgment against Witt and his practice. His law license has been suspended by the Missouri Supreme Court.
The newspaper said Witt has repeatedly declined its interview requests.
Witt had previously helped solve a 2008 Clayton bombing that nearly killed another attorney.
In that case, he told federal investigators that he believed his client, Milton "Skip" Ohlsen III, had planted a bomb intended to kill a lawyer representing Olsen's ex-wife. Instead, the bomb nearly killed a different lawyer. Ohlsen was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to explosives-related charges.
Posted by Probate Shark at 7:00 AM 0 comments
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Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Senate Aging Committee Launches New Anti-Fraud Hotline, Enhanced Website to Assist Seniors

Editor's note: Your ProbateShark wonders if the Senate would take action about the fraud perpetrated on Alice R. Gore and her family by the judges and lawyers of the Probate Court of Cook County.  Would the Senators consider this just a "probate matter" or would they investigate the criminal financial enterprise operated by this probate court?   Lucius Verenus, Schoolmaster, ProbateSharks.com 

 

Senate Aging Committee Launches New Anti-Fraud Hotline, Enhanced Website to Assist Seniors


 
WASHINGTON, DC – If you or someone you know suspect you’ve been victim of a scam or fraud aimed at seniors, the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging has set up a new toll-free hotline to help.
The hotline was unveiled today to make it easier for senior citizens to report suspected fraud and receive assistance.   It will be staffed by a team of committee investigators weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST.  The investigators, who have experience with investment scams, identity theft, bogus sweepstakes and lottery schemes, Medicare and Social Security fraud, and a variety of other senior exploitation issues, will directly examine complaints and, if appropriate, refer them to the proper authorities.
Anyone with information about suspected fraud can call the toll-free fraud hotline at 1-855-303-9470, or contact the committee through its website, located at http://www.aging.senate.gov/fraud-hotline. 
As chairman and ranking member of the committee, Sens. Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Susan Collins (R-ME) have made consumer protection and fraud prevention a primary focus of the committee’s work.  This year the panel has held hearings examining Jamaican lottery scams, tax-related identity theft, Social Security fraud and payday loans impact on seniors.   
“If you’re contacted about an offer that sounds too good to be true, then it probably is,” Nelson said.  “This new hotline will give seniors a resource to turn to for assistance if they think they’ve been victimized or have questions about fraudulent activities.”   
“Ensuring that seniors are as equipped as possible to avoid becoming victims of fraud and other scams is among our committee’s top priorities,” said Collins.  “This new hotline offered by the Senate Special Committee on Aging will help to identify and put a stop to the cruel scams that hurt seniors and their families.”
The hotline’s unveiling also coincides with the committee’s launch of an enhanced senior-friendly website.   The site’s new features include large print, simple navigation and an uncluttered layout that enables seniors to find information more easily and conveniently.  Online visitors can also increase text size, change colors or view a text-only version of the site. 
Posted by Probate Shark at 10:40 AM 0 comments
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Saturday, April 20, 2013

Operation S.A.F.E. (Stop Adult Financial Exploitation) to be Presented

Editor’s note: Your ProbateShark filed a complaint with the Florida Attorney General’s Office protesting the fraud perpetrated on the Estate of Irving Faskowitz by an unrelated family with a similar last name. The real heirs never knew that they had a real rich uncle and were screwed out of their inheritance. To this day the State of Florida has not performed due diligence and contacted the real heirs. Shame on FL.  Lucius Verenus, Schoolmaster, ProbateSharks.com

Operation S.A.F.E. (Stop Adult Financial Exploitation) to be Presented

On Friday May 10, 2013, the Department of Financial Services, overseen by Florida's Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater will present OPERATION S.A.F.E. (Stop Adult Financial Exploitation) at the South County Civic Center, Jog Rd., Delray Beach beginning at 1:00 pm. CFO Atwater's office is partnering with the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office to present this program and to ensure that our Palm Beach County residents get the latest on local frauds and scams and who to call and what to do if they are a victim.

Details on numerous scams and frauds including identity theft, insurance and health care fraud, reverse mortgage scams, investment scams, contractor fraud and lottery and sweepstakes scams will be presented and you will learn how NOT to become a victim and how to protect your information and yourself. Representatives from the Department of Financial Services and PBSO will be there to answer your questions and assist you with any problems. Also at the event will be representatives from AARP, Elder Affairs, Consumer Affairs and other senior advocacy groups and agencies.

Current statistics show that one in five seniors has been a victim of financial fraud yet only one in 44 will report it. Please join us for this important program -- possibly the most important program you cannot afford to miss.

Tags:


http://blogs.trb.com/news/local/community/westdelray/2013/04/operation_safe_stop_adult_fina.html
Posted by Probate Shark at 6:55 AM 0 comments
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Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Philanthropist pleads guilty to cheating the terminally ill


Editor’s note: Your ProbateShark knows of a GAL in the Probate Court of Cook County who does the same type of identity theft. Only she is not a philanthropist and keeps the money for herself. Lucius Verenus, Schoolmaster, ProbateSharks.com

 

Philanthropist pleads guilty to cheating the terminally ill



Joseph Caramadre
Credit: NBC 10 News
Cranston attorney and estate planner Joseph Caramadre.

By: ERIKA NIEDOWSKI | The Associated Press
Published: November 19, 2012
Updated: November 19, 2012 - 11:38 AM

» 4 Comments | Post a Comment

PROVIDENCE -- Two men accused of stealing the identities of terminally ill people to reap $30 million from insurance companies and brokerage houses pleaded guilty Monday, several days into their trial, and face prison sentences of up to 10 years each.
Estate planning lawyer and philanthropist Joseph Caramadre, 50, and his former employee Raymour Radhakrishnan, 28, each entered guilty pleas in U.S. District Court in Providence to single counts of wire fraud and conspiracy, ending the trial that began last week and had been expected to last up to three months. Testimony was to resume Monday.
Prosecutors say Caramadre, CEO of Estate Planning Resources in Cranston, and Radhakrishnan took out variable annuities and so-called "death-put" bonds that would pay out when a person died. Authorities say they lied to terminally ill people to get personal information that was used to purchase bonds and annuities in their names without consent.
"Today's message is that greed is not good," Rhode Island U.S. Attorney Peter Neronha said after the proceeding.
He said the defendants had taken the identities of the terminally ill for no other reason than to make money.
"They did that with impunity, and that's what brought them down," he said. "Life is not just about making money."
Caramadre and Radhakrishnan earlier had pleaded not guilty to a 66-count indictment on charges including conspiracy, identity theft, aggravated identity theft and money laundering. Caramadre had also been charged with witness tampering.
At the time of the indictment, Caramadre's spokesman said he could never take advantage of anyone and contended that prosecutors had been led astray by an insurance industry "upset it got beat at its own game with products they designed and offered to the investing public."
Caramadre had no comment after leaving the courthouse Monday. His spokesman Gregg Perry said in a statement that he "has made a decision that acceptance of this plea agreement is in his best interests and the best interests of his family."
Radhakrishnan had been representing himself during the trial but agreed to be assisted by public defender Olin Thompson for the plea change. A message was left for Thompson.
Both men face up to a 10-year prison sentence under the plea agreement. Judge William E. Smith scheduled sentencing for February.
Prosecutors said the men placed an ad in a Catholic newspaper that offered $2,000 to people who were terminally ill.
The pair lied to people who responded to the ads and got personal information that was then used to purchase bonds and annuities in their names without their consent, authorities said. They also lied to the companies issuing the accounts, prosecutors said, by falsely saying that the people opening the accounts had substantial wealth and investment experience.
Some of the terminally ill people were told accounts would be opened to benefit their families or to help others with a disease, but that didn't happen, prosecutors said.
Testimony began last week with a 2009 video deposition by a Westerly man who has since died of cancer. Richard Wiley said he had heard, while in hospice, about a philanthropist who was giving out money to help dying people with their expenses. He testified he met with Radhakrishnan, who gave him $3,000, had him sign some paperwork and turn over some personal information.
Prosecutors showed Wiley papers, bearing his signature, that authorized accounts be opened in his name, but he said he had given no such permission and didn't recognize some of the documents.




http://www2.turnto10.com/news/2012/nov/19/10/philanthropist-pleads-guilty-scheme-involving-term-ar-1246024/

Posted by Probate Shark at 8:22 AM 0 comments
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