Xã hội học - Larceny offenses

FOURTEENLarceny Offenses LEARNING OBJECTIVESExplain the four categories of credit card fraud Be familiar with check fraud schemes and organizations Understand the process of cellular phone cloning Describe the classifications of shoplifters and the patterns of professional shoplifting groups Explain the most common types of confidence games Identify several forms of mail fraud Outline various techniques to launder money Describe identity theft Discuss the looting of archeological sites 14-1LARCENYThe legal definition of larceny contains five essential elements: taking and carrying away personal property of another with the intent to deprive permanently14-2INVESTIGATIVE PROCEDURE For theft to occur, two elements must be present: opportunity and desireInvestigative procedure depends on the facts of each caseThus, the theft of an item from a home-possibly by a guest-would be handled differently from business thefts by employees14-3CREDIT CARD FRAUD Types of Credit Card FraudStolen cards. Credit cards can be stolen in a variety of ways, such as muggings, purse snatchings, and office and health club thefts.Counterfeit credit cards. Counterfeit cards vary in quality from those made on embossing machines stolen for companies that produce cards to those of obviously poor quality. Shave-and-paste schemes. Account number are shaved off one or more legitimate credit cards and replaced by new numbers.Fraudulent application. Individuals apply to several credit card companies, hoping that one or more will issue them credit cards.14-4CHECK FRAUD ORGANIZATIONSThe major groups. The principal ethnic groups involved in illegal check fraud schemes include Nigerians, Asians (particular Vietnamese), Russians, Armenians, and Mexicans. The players. Despite the lack of a rigid hierarchy, members typically fall into one or several roles.Leaders. Leaders of an organization generally have an extensive criminal history and possess above-average intelligence.14-5(a)CHECK FRAUD ORGANIZATIONS (cont'd)Check procurers. Check procurers obtain authentic checks, usually by stealing them while employed within a financial information on legitimate individuals.Check passers. Check passers actually negotiate stolen and counterfeit checks through the banking system and collect the proceeds to distribute to the group.14-5(b)TYPES OF CHECK FRAUD SCHEMESThere are a variety of check fraud schemes perpetrated throughout the country.Large-scale counterfeiting. The most notorious groups engaged in large-scale counterfeiting operations are the Vietnamese triads operating out of Orange County, California.Identity assumption. Seen in various metropolitan areas, identity assumption schemes often involve Nigerian and Vietnamese criminal organizations. Payroll-check fraud. A variation of the identity assumption scheme involves placing group members within payroll-check processing companies.14-6CLONING BOXCloning is the unauthorized and illegal programming of cellular phones with access codes of legitimate customersIt allows criminals to obtain cheap, mobile communicationsThe are not traceable through traditional law enforcement methods14-7(Courtesy Police Magazine)PATTERNS OF PROFESSIONAL SHOPLIFTING GROUPSThe groups usually operate in teams of two to six people. Some patterns include:Use of a booster bag designed to defeat electronic sensory security devicesUse the U.S. mail and UPS to ship stolen clothing to specific locations for resale14-8(a)PATTERNS OF PROFESSIONAL SHOPLIFTING GROUPS (cont'd)Sell stolen clothing “on the street” or to countries in South AmericaUse false identification when arrestedUse local motels as base of operations prior to re-sale14-8(b)SHOPLIFTINGShoplifters can be classified into two groups: commercial shoplifters, or “boosters,” who steal merchandise for resale and pilferers who take merchandise for private useReducing Shoplifting LossesThe retailing industry is increasingly taking steps to reduce shoplifting losses, with techniques running from the simple to the sophisticated14-8RECOVERED STOLEN PROPERTYShoplifting groups use local motels or a base of operation to:inventorystore andpackage merchandise14-9(Courtesy Detective Joseph Morrash, Alexandria, Virginia, Police Department)CONFIDENCE GAMES The Pigeon DropThis swindle is operated by two people who switch money envelopes on an unsuspecting victim.The Bank Examiner Scheme The bank examiner scheme is one of the more sophisticated con games and requires knowledge of the target bank. The con artist poses as a bank examiner to swindle a bank customer.Inheritance ScamIn this scam, the victim's phone rings and, on the other end, a sweet-sounding person says, “You may be the recipient of a huge inheritance”14-10(a)CONFIDENCE GAMES (cont'd) Three-Card MonteThis scam is similar to the traditional shell game. The con artist uses “marked cards” to cheat a victim.C.O.D. ScamThe suspects usually pose as delivery employees. After writing a phony mailing label, the suspect goes next door and asks the neighbor to accept a perishable package for the absent neighbor and to pay cash for COD charges.14-10(b)EXAMPLES OF MAIL FRAUDFree Vacation ScamWhen a postcard or letter is received in the mail and/or an unexpected phone call comes from an unknown company promising a complimentary vacation in an exotic spot, someone is probably trying to make the recipient the victim of the free vacation scam.900 Telephone Number SchemesThere are swindlers who lure people to call a 900 number without giving anything in return for their money. Such a call may even result in charges on a phone bill of $30 or more.Advance Fee Loan SchemesThe advance fee swindler claims to be able to obtain a loan for a prospective borrower with ease from a legitimate lending institution, such as a bank or a savings and loan association. However, the swindler has no ability to secure a loan.14-11(b)EXAMPLES OF MAIL FRAUD (cont'd) Work-at-Home SchemesAdvertised opportunities to earn money by doing work at home are frequently nothing more than fraudulent schemes and, at best, rarely result in any meaningful earnings.Home Improvement and Home Repair FraudsA favorite trick of dishonest home repair firms is to mail a brochure offering to do an expensive job for an unusually low price. Once the contract is signed, the homeowner learns why the price was so low. The firm never delivers the service which was paid for in advance.14-11(c)WHITE COLLAR CRIMEDefined as a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his or her occupation14-12PYRAMID SALES SCHEMEThis is a marketing program by which people buy the right to sell others the right to sell specific productsThe promoters select the product. These may include:household itemscosmeticssafety devices14-13(a)PYRAMID SALES SCHEME (cont'd)The promoters sell large inventories to distributors with the added incentive of permitting the distributor to sell new distributorshipsThe real profit earned primarily by recruiters developing new recruits who develop more recruitsThere is little or no concern given to direct sale of the products or services to the publicUltimately consumer distribution becomes a sham and acts as a cloak of respectability14-13(b)MONEY LAUNDERING Before spending or otherwise using any funds obtained from illegal sources, criminals must give the money an aura of legality. This conversion is known as laundering.The Laundering of Money by Organized Crime. Organized crime is an estimated $100 billion-a-year untaxed business operated by groups ranging from motorcycle gangs, to Asian drug triads, to the Italian Mafia.Domestic Laundries. Businesses such as restaurants, bars, and massage parlors, which take in a high proportion of cash, tend to be more desirable as laundries than businesses that receive most of their income as checks or other traceable instruments.14-14(a)MONEY LAUNDERING (cont'd) Foreign Laundries. Much of the money invested by organized crime in legitimate businesses in the United States is first routed through secret numbered bank accounts in countries such as Liechtenstein.Use of the Internet to Launder Money. One method of money laundering through the Internet is to establish a company offering services payable through the Internet.Internet Gambling. It seems that Internet gambling might be an ideal web-based “service” to serve as a cover for a money laundering scheme through the net.14-14(b)NUDE BAR: A FOCUS ON MONEY LAUNDERINGMoney laundering by organized crime often uses cash-oriented business such as:restaurantsbarsadult entertainment venues14-15© Joel GordonLAUNDERING OF MONEY FROM ILLICIT SOURCESOrganized crime has many sources of illegal funds that must be intermingled with legitimate business’ moniesThis process known as money laundering makes it difficult for investigators to trace the illegal funds14-16RACKETEERING RECORDS ANALYSIS UNIT (RRAU)This is part of the FBI Laboratory in Washington, DC. which can establish the necessary links between criminal and money laundering by examining records kept by criminals14-17IDENTITY THEFT Common ways thieves gather other person's identifying information include: Dumpster Diving. Individuals or businesses that fails to dispose properly of personal identification information, by shredding or mutilating, are susceptible to a "dumpster diver." This is essentially an individual who retrieves discarded material looking for anything of value.Mail Theft. Mail theft presents another way criminals obtain personal identification information.14-18(a)IDENTITY THEFT (cont'd) Internal Access. Internal access refers to an individual obtaining personal information illegally from a computer connected to a credit reporting bureau or to an employee accessing a company's database that contains personal identification information.Computerized Information and the Internet. With so much personal information obtainable in the networked world, thieves can access information easily.14-18(b)RECOMMENDATIONS AND STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING IDENTITY THEFTLocal police can take the following steps to help citizens protect against identity theft:Patrol residential areas on trash collection days and during the tax seasonEnforce trespass laws with regard to residential and industrial dump sitesAdvise citizens to shred documents and drop off mail in a locked mailbox14-19(a)RECOMMENDATIONS AND STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING IDENTITY THEFT (cont'd)Remind people to be cautious using automated teller machinesDisseminate information to the public on how to mitigate and prevent computer, credit, and cellular telephone fraudSuggest restrictions to businesses to reduce internal access fraudEducate officers about the various methods used to commit identity theft and the resulting types of fraud14-19(b)THE LOOTING OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITESArchaeological looting is defined as the illegal, unscientific removal of archaeological resources. It occurs on public and private lands. Legal ConsiderationsFederal Provisions. Federal preservation laws date from the late nineteenth century. State Laws. As of mid-1990, none of the states had a unified law comprising all statutes protecting archaeological resources. Instead, states tend to categorize laws related to archaeological resources under a variety of headings. 14-20(a)THE LOOTING OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES (cont'd)Conducting Enforcement InvestigationsDifferent laws apply when the violation occurs on federal land as opposed to state landThere are relatively few laws applicable to private lands as opposed to the more heavily protected public lands14-20(b)LOOTED GRAVEArchaeological locations of public and tribal land, has increased due to:the widespread fascination with our pastthe high dollar value associated with artifacts14-21(Courtesy National Park Service)