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Area lawyers fall victim to intricate ploys
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Author:  Janez [ Tue Nov 23, 2010 8:30 pm ]
Post subject:  Area lawyers fall victim to intricate ploys

Monday, November 22, 2010
BY MATT MILLER mmiller@patriot-news.com
Not even lawyers are immune from Internet scams.

The proof is in a grand jury indictment issued in U.S. Middle District Court charging six people with a $32 million international con that hit 80 lawyers in the U.S. and Canada.

At least two victims are midstate attorneys.

"This has adversely affected my life. I feel extremely violated," said a local lawyer who, after expressing concerns about possible harm to his professional reputation, agreed to speak if granted anonymity. "This was very, very sophisticated."

The five Nigerians and one Canadian charged in the scam were indicted after a multi-year investigation by the FBI, Secret Service and the Postal Service. An alleged ringleader, Emmanuel Ekhator, 40, is in custody in Nigeria, awaiting extradition to the U.S.

The others are believed to be in Canada, Nigeria and South Korea, according to court filings. All are being prosecuted on charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to money laundering.

As portrayed in the indictment, the alleged con was a "collection scam" that used the attorneys as unwitting accomplices to abet check frauds against banks in Asia.

In addition to those who were scammed, the indictment cites 300 other cases in which lawyers were approached by the con artists.

Cumberland County District Attorney David Freed, whose office has handled numerous Internet fraud cases, especially scams against the elderly, said the federal case shows that no one is immune from such cons.

"This emphasizes how vigilant people need to be, whether they're people living on fixed incomes or experienced attorneys," Freed said.

Go to http://www.pennlive.com/news/patriotnew ... xml&coll=1 to read the rest of this story.

Author:  admin [ Wed Nov 24, 2010 9:34 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Area lawyers fall victim to intricate ploys

Stories like this just show how ANYONE can fall victim to a scam. Thanks for posting!

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