Page 7 - Frauds

Trafigura checked traders didn't collude in Gupta fraud case: Report

Trafigura filed a lawsuit against Gupta in February, alleging seven companies that it said were controlled by him carried out a systematic fraud involving nickel cargoes

CBI files FIR, searches 13 locations in Uco Bank fund transfer case

The CBI has registered an FIR in connection with Rs 820 crore worth of suspicious IMPS transactions in UCO Bank in November this year and searched 13 locations in multiple cities, officials said on Tuesday. The search operation, which continued till late night Monday, also covered Kolkata and Mangalore, they said. The CBI action came following the FIR that was registered on a complaint from UCO Bank against two support engineers working with the bank and other unknown persons. It alleged suspicious Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) transactions amounting to approximately Rs. 820 crore, the agency spokesperson said in a statement. During the searches, electronic evidence, including mobile phones, laptops, computer systems, email archives and debit/credit cards, were recovered, he said. "It was alleged that between 10th November 2023 and 13th November 2023, IMPS inward transactions originating from 14000 account holders across seven private banks were directed to 41000 account holders

EU antitrust regulators accuse five car battery makers of running cartel

The five manufacturers are Banner, Clarios, Exide, Elettra and Rombat. They make 12-volt lead batteries which are currently used to start most combustion engine cars

US seeks over $4 billion from crypto exchange Binance to end criminal case

The US Justice Department has been investigating Binance for allegedly aiding in the evasion of US sanctions against Iran and Russia

Amway generated proceeds of crime of over Rs 4k cr via MLM scheme: ED

Amway India, which runs a multi-level marketing (MLM) scheme, generated proceeds of crime worth more than Rs 4,000 crore and a substantial part of it was siphoned off to overseas bank accounts, the Enforcement Directorate alleged on Monday. The federal agency said this after filing a charge-sheet against Amway India Enterprise Pvt Ltd before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Hyderabad. The court took cognisance of the prosecution's complaint on Monday, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said in a statement. The criminal case of money laundering registered by the ED stems from multiple FIRs filed by the Telangana Police against Amway and its directors. It is alleged that they were promoting an "illegal money circulation scheme under the guise of sale of goods" and "cheating the general public by promising them very high commissions/incentives through simple enrolment of new members and by claiming that these commissions/incentives would continue in ...

Cognitive tools for thwarting scams

In an era where we constantly fear being swindled, a book that delves into the psychology of deception and offers guidance on steering clear of fraud becomes essential reading

FTX founder Bankman-Fried convicted of defrauding cryptocurrency customers

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried's spectacular rise and fall in the cryptocurrency industry a journey that included his testimony before Congress, a Super Bowl advertisement and dreams of a future run for president hit a new bottom Thursday when a New York jury convicted him of fraud in a scheme that cheated customers and investors of at least $10 billion. After the monthlong trial, jurors rejected Bankman-Fried's claim during four days on the witness stand in Manhattan federal court that he never committed fraud or meant to cheat customers before FTX, once the world's second-largest crypto exchange, collapsed into bankruptcy a year ago. His crimes caught up to him. His crimes have been exposed, Assistant US Attorney Danielle Sassoon told the jury of the onetime billionaire just before they were read the law by Judge Lewis A Kaplan and began deliberations. Sassoon said Bankman-Fried turned his customers' accounts into his personal piggy bank as up to $14 billion disappeared. She urge

Self-regulation does not work well in preventing frauds, says Sebi WTM

Amarjeet Singh says 16 working groups looking to simplify regulations

Two Indian-origin men in US guilty of fraud in multi-million Covid fund

Two men of Indian origin in the US have pleaded guilty to their participation in a multi-million dollar fraud scheme by obtaining loans under an economic assistance plan following the Covid-19 pandemic in the country, the justice department said. The Department of Justice in a statement said Nishant Patel, 41, and Harjeet Singh, 49, both from Houston and three others engaged in fraudulently obtaining and laundering millions of dollars in forgivable Paycheck Protection Programme (PPP) loans that the Small Business Administration (SBA) guarantees under the CARES Act. They admitted to submitting false and fraudulent PPP loan applications to SBA and certain SBA-approved PPP lenders. All five defendants also assisted in laundering the fraudulently obtained PPP loan funds by supplying co-conspirators with blank, endorsed checks, which were made payable to people posing as employees of the companies that received the PPP loan, but who were in fact not employees. These fake paychecks were

Civil fraud trial 'took me off campaign trail,' claims Donald Trump

"This was for politics. It has been very successful for them - they took me off the campaign trail," Trump said as he exited the courtroom after the court was wrapped for the day

22-year-old calls it his biggest mistake after losing Rs 67 lakh in crypto

A 22-year-old Google employee, whose aim was to resign at age 35 with Rs 41 crore savings, lost Rs 67 lakh post investing into crypto. He called it his 'biggest financial mistake'

Morgan Stanley sued for $750 million by private equity firms claiming fraud

Morgan Stanley said in a statement, "The Firm does not believe the claims have merit and will defend itself vigorously."

CBI books infra firm in Rs 3,800 cr bank fraud case, searches 4 locations

The CBI has conducted searches at four locations in Mumbai after registering an FIR against Unity Infraprojects Ltd, its then CMD Kishore Krishnarao Avarsekar and others for allegedly defrauding a consortium of banks to the tune of Rs 3,847.58 crore, officials said on Monday. The CBI took action on a complaint of the SBI, one of the consortium members which alleged that the fraud took place at its Commercial Branch in Mumbai where the accused persons siphoned the "Bank's funds by doing fictitious transactions, manipulated and fudged books of accounts with an objective to defraud and cheat the bank and to gain unlawfully at the cost of the Bank's funds". The officials said searches were conducted recently at the premises of the accused. The account of the 44-year-old infrastructure company, which had taken over Rs 3,800 crore from 23 lenders against moveable and non-moveable assets besides personal and corporate guarantees, had become a non-performing asset on June 24, 2014. Five yea

Bigg Boss fame actor Kriti Verma named in ED chargesheet in fraud case

During the investigation, it was discovered that Kriti Verma had sold a property in Gurugram, which was acquired with Rs 1.02 crore of proceeds from the crime

Govt seeks public feedback on draft guidelines for dark patterns

Dark patterns are practices or patterns on UI/UX interactions on any platform designed to mislead or trick users

FM nudges PSU banks to take swift action against frauds, wilful defaulters

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has asked public sector banks (PSBs) to take swift action in cases concerning fraud and wilful defaults to reduce bad loans and take steps to accelerate growth momentum, sources said. Banks have written off Rs 11.17 lakh crore bad loans from their books in the last six years till the financial year 2021-22. The non-performing assets (NPAs), including those in respect of which full provisioning has been made on completion of four years, are removed from the balance sheet of the bank concerned by way of write-off. In a recent meeting with heads of PSBs, the finance minister urged them to focus on having robust risk management practices and mitigating Cyber Security risks. During the meeting, it was also emphasised that banks should follow a strong internal audit framework and adherence to caveats of internal policies, sources said. Some of the challenges highlighted during the meeting included the declining share of market share in terms of advanc

KPCC chief Sudhakaran arrested by Crime Branch, later released on bail

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief K Sudhakaran was on Friday arrested by the Crime Branch wing of the police in a cheating case, in which the prime accused is controversial antique dealer Monson Mavunkal, and later released on bail. Sudhakaran, after being released on bail, told reporters that he was arrested after several hours of questioning by the Crime Branch before which he had appeared in the morning for questioning. "They questioned me. After that, they recorded my arrest and then I was released on bail. I have faith in the judiciary. I will face the case in court," he told reporters here. Sudhakaran, surrounded by several party leaders and workers, said that he was "fully confident" that the police had no evidence against him in the case for him to be punished. "I am not afraid. I am not going to hide anywhere," he said. On being asked whether he rejected links with Mavunkal, the KPCC chief said that he has. Meanwhile, senior party leaders of Congress in Kera

GST officers unearth 461 fake entities involved in Rs 863 cr ITC fraud

The GST Intelligence officers have unearthed a racket involving 461 shell/fake entities, which had passed on fraudulent input tax credit of Rs 863 crore. According to the Finance Ministry, the Gurugram Zonal Unit of the Directorate General of GST Intelligence busted the racket, which passed on fraudulent Input Tax Credit (ITC) through fake shell entities following a search operation. "Huge number of forged/ morphed/ fake soft copies of documents like rent agreements, electricity bills, Aadhar card, driving license, PAN card, etc. were detected in the laptops resumed from this secret office, which were used to create and operate their fake entities. "The forensic examination of the laptops, devices seized from this office led to the eventual detection of ITC fraud to the tune of Rs 863 crore, involving fake 461 entities and arrest of two key operatives," the ministry said on Thursday. The initial investigation indicates that the fraudulent ITC credit has eventually travelled to the

Genuine students victimised by fraud won't face deportation: Canadian Min

We recognise the immense contributions that international students make to our country, and we are committed to providing a path to Canada that is honest and transparent

Bank held liable for fraud by its manager

The National Commission noted that other bank officials had blamed its own manager for embezzlement, so for the bank to accuse PHFI's employees was an afterthought