Friday, February 7, 2014

Complete DHS Report for February 7, 2014

Daily Report

 • The owners of the now-defunct Pacific Property Assets were for allegedly using their business to run a Ponzi scheme that caused losses of more than $110 million involving properties in Arizona and California. – Los Angeles Times See item 7 below in the Financial Services Sector

 • Duke Energy stated that coal ash spilling from a stormwater pipe from an old power plant in Eden, North Carolina, continued but at a significantly reduced rate after about 82,000 tons of ash spilled into the Dan River. – National Public Radio

15. February 5, National Public Radio – (North Carolina, Virginia) More than 80,000 tons of coal ash flow into N.C. river. Duke Energy stated February 5 that coal ash spilling from a stormwater pipe from an old power plant in Eden, North Carolina, continued but at a significantly less rate after about 82,000 tons of ash spilled into the Dan River beginning February 2. Repairs are underway while crews work to stop the flow. Source: http://ksmu.org/npr/more-80000-tons-coal-ash-flow-nc-river

 • Authorities charged 25 individuals in connection with a massive scheme based out of a clinic in New York City which operated as a pill mill and flooded the city’s black market with more than $500 million in painkillers. – Reuters

17. February 5, Reuters – (New York) Two dozen charged in $500 million New York pain-pill scheme. Authorities charged 25 individuals, including doctors, in connection with a massive scheme based out of the Astramed clinic in New York City which operated as a pill mill and flooded the city’s black market with more than $500 million in painkillers. The clinic sold fake prescriptions to drug dealers and collected money in exchange for fake doctor’s visits by phony patients, in order to receive prescriptions for narcotics. Source: http://news.msn.com/crime-justice/two-dozen-charged-in-dollar500-million-new-york-pain-pill-scheme

 • Schools, businesses, and government offices were forced to close, and hundreds of thousands of people were without power, after a second winter storm dumped snow and left ice on trees and power lines across the Northeast. – Associated Press

19. February 6, Associated Press – (National) Pa. utility agency says 451K remain without power. Schools, businesses, and government offices were forced to close February 6 after a second winter storm the week of February 3 dumped snow and left ice on trees and power lines across the Northeast. Utility crews worked to restore power to hundreds of thousands of customers that remained in the dark. Source: http://news.msn.com/us/storm-leaves-hundreds-of-thousands-in-the-dark

Details

Financial Services Sector

7. February 5, Los Angeles Times – (Arizona; California) FBI arrests two men in alleged $110-million Ponzi scheme. The owners of the now-defunct Pacific Property Assets were arrested by FBI agents February 5 for charges filed in a January indictment accusing them of using their business to run a Ponzi scheme that caused losses of more than $110 million. The scheme allegedly invested in properties in Arizona and southern California beginning in 1999. Source: http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-fbi-arrests-two-in-110-million-oc-ponzi-scheme-20140205,0,7253046.story#axzz2sYTDFvbj

8. February 5, Staten Island Advance – (New York) Staten Island man convicted in $5 million investment scam. A New York City man was convicted on nine counts of fraud for running an investment fraud scheme through a fake company, Grayson Hewitt, that defrauded investors of around $5 million between May 2010 and April 2012. Source: http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2014/02/staten_island_man_convicted_in.html

Information Technology Sector

23. February 6, Help Net Security – (International) Insecure file sharing puts corporate data at risk. Globalscape released the results of a survey of over 500 corporate professionals and found that in the past 12 months, 63 percent of employees used personal email to send sensitive documents, and that employees frequently used potentially insecure consumer cloud services and sites to store sensitive information, among other findings. Source: http://www.net-security.org/secworld.php?id=16318

Communications Sector

Nothing to report