Monday, October 3, 2011

Complete DHS Daily Report for October 3, 2011

Daily Report

Top Stories

• A suspect in possession of illegal military style assault weapons was arrested after authorities executed a search warrant and found dozens of the guns at his home and business. – KSEE 24 Fresno (See item 37)

37. September 29, KSEE 24 Fresno – (California) Search warrants turn up 40 illegal military-type weapons. A suspect in possession of several illegal military style assault weapons was arrested after authorities executed a search warrant and found dozens of the guns at his home and business. Investigators from the MAGEC Metro Tactical Team, with the assistance of the Fresno Police Department's Violent Crime Impact Team, concluded a month-long investigation by serving the warrants September 28 in Fresno, California. The warrants were obtained after investigators received information from “CrimeStoppers” regarding a 41-year-old man possibly being in possession of several stolen military assault weapons. These weapons were possibly related to the theft of numerous AK-74 military machine guns taken from Fort Irwin military base. Authorities searched the suspect's Parlier business and Kingsburg home. They seized 40 illegal military-type assault weapons, a grenade launcher, and suppressed military assault rifles. Also recovered were a large amount of high capacity magazines and ammunition. Investigators did not find any stolen AK-74 assault weapons, however. The suspect was booked into the Fresno County jail on numerous weapons-related charges. Source: http://www.ksee24.com/news/local/Two-Search-Warrants-Turn-Up-40-Illegal-Military-type-Weapons-130806498.html

• A federal agency found that slow action by a contractor led to nearly 1,000 soldiers and civilian workers being exposed to a carcinogenic chemical at an Iraqi water treatment plant for more than 5 months. – Associated Press (See item 39)

39. September 29, Associated Press – (International) IG report says KBR dragged feet on chemical. A federal agency has found that a contractor failed to act as quickly as it could have to protect soldiers and civilians from exposure to a carcinogenic chemical at an Iraqi water treatment plant. The report by the Inspector General for the Department of Defense faults contractor Kellogg, Brown, and Root (KBR) for failing to comply with safety and health standards, which led to nearly 1,000 Army soldiers and civilian employees being exposed to sodium dichromate over 5 months, the Portland Oregonian reported September 29. Sodium dichromate is an anticorrosive compound that can cause skin and breathing problems and cancer. The report said it took 5 months from the initial site visit until the military command required protective equipment. The report said KBR did not fully comply with occupational safety and health standards required under its contract with the Army, so “a greater number of service members and (Defense Department) civilian employees were exposed to sodium dichromate, and for longer periods, increasing the potential for chronic health effects.” The company has previously denied knowingly exposing soldiers or contractors to health risks. Members of the Oregon National Guard have filed suit over alleged exposure to the chemical while they were at the Qarmat Ali water treatment plant. Source: http://www.militarytimes.com/news/2011/09/ap-army-guard-oregon-inspector-general-kbr-chemicals-iraq-092911/

Details

Banking and Finance Sector

18. September 30, Lower Hudson Journal News – (New York) ATM 'skimmers,' cameras found in Bronxville, Yonkers, Pelham; how to spot them. Bank card skimmers and secret cameras have been found at ATMs in four communities in the Lower Hudson region of New York. Bronxville police revealed September 28 they were investigating the discovery of such devices at a bank's automated teller machine. On September 29, Bronxville police said they were working with Yonkers, Pelham, and Poughkeepsie police departments. The U.S. Secret Service has also entered the investigation, a Bronxville police sergant said. Bronxville police are trying to zero in on a picture of a man wearing a hat and sunglasses whom they believe illegally installed the equipment found at the HSBC Bank branch at 74 Pondfield Road. The device was found September 25. Bronxville police said the devices were detected quickly by customers, and police removed them. The customers who used the ATM while the illegal device was locked into it were notified. Source: http://www.lohud.com/article/20110930/NEWS02/109300326/ATM-skimmers-cameras-found-Bronxville-Yonkers-Pelham?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|s

19. September 29, U.S. Department of Treasury – (International) Treasury continues efforts targeting terrorist organizations operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Continuing efforts to combat the financing of terrorism, the U.S. Department of the Treasury September 29 announced the designations of five individuals pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224 for providing financial, material or technological support, or acting for or on behalf of the most dangerous terrorist organizations operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan. “These financiers and facilitators provide the fuel for the Taliban, Haqqani Network, and al-Qa'ida to realize their violent aspirations,” said the Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. As a result of the action, U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with the designees, and any assets they may hold under U.S. jurisdiction are frozen. Source: http://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/Pages/tg1316.aspx

20. September 29, Salt Lake Tribune – (Utah) Feds file new indictment in Koerber investment fraud case. A federal grand jury September 29 returned a new 20-count indictment alleging a Utah County businessman engaged in widespread investment and tax fraud. The indictment follows a federal judge’s decision in July to throw out a key piece of evidence in the case, in which he is accused of running an investment scam that took in more than $100 million. An assistant U.S. attorney previously said the ruling by a U.S. district judge affected a “significant” part of an existing 22-count indictment alleging fraud, money laundering, and tax evasion by the defendant in his operation of FranklinSquires Cos., and related real-estate investment businesses. The judge's decision forced prosecutors to seek a new indictment, filed September 29, a public information officer for the U.S. attorney’s office said. The indictment accuses the defendant of operating a Ponzi scheme in which money from new investors was used to pay initial and previous investors to make the businesses appear profitable, and to continue to attract new money. The suspect was originally indicted on 3 counts in May 2009, but 19 additional charges were added in a previous superseding indictment in November of that year. The defendant was considered something of an investment guru in Utah County, where he charged large fees for seminars and classes about investing in real estate using procedures he called ”equity milling.” But prosecutors also said he lured in hundreds of investors with promises of high returns before the companies collapsed when the nation’s real-estate bubble burst in 2008. The indictments allege he used about half of the $100 million to pay back initial investors, and also spent funds on investments other than real estate. Source: http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/52657502-78/koerber-indictment-investors-federal.html.csp

21. September 29, Miami Herald – (Florida) 20 South Floridians indicted in home equity loan fraud case. Twenty South Floridians were charged with participating in a $40 million mortgage fraud scheme, according to an indictment released September 29 by a U.S. district attorney. Between 2006 and 2008, several real estate professionals falsified loan documents and obtained nearly 200 home equity lines of credit loans, the indictment said. The scheme allegedly included individuals from nearly every level of the real estate industry — a bank professional, mortgage brokers, a title agent, a home appraiser and several sales agents. According to the indictment, a brother and sister, both of Miami, fraudulently obtained home equity lines of credit and mortgage loans for homes and condos throughout Miami-Dade County. A Regions Bank manager, also charged, helped approve the loans. The brother, sister, and the brother's wife worked with other real estate professionals to falsify loan documents, misrepresenting borrowers’ income, employment, assets, and other financial data, the indictment states. A title agent from Miami Lake helped disburse millions in loan proceeds to co-conspirators. The 20 defendants are charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, and other mortgage fraud charges. If convicted, they face maximum sentences of 30 years in prison on each count. Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/09/29/2431659/20-south-floridians-indicted-in.html

22. September 29, Minnestoa Public Radio – (Minnesota) Bloomington accountant charged with mortgage fraud. A Bloomington, Minnesota accountant was charged September 29 with defrauding a bank of $8 million. The 63-year-old was the senior vice president and chief financial officer of Centennial Mortgage and Funding, Inc. when he allegedly funneled money from clients' mortgage loans into his company's coffers. The Minnesota U.S. attorney's office claims he used the money to cover Centennial's operating losses and payroll from 2007 through 2008. He also allegedly lied about the status of mortgage loans, and convinced banks to put additional money in lines of credit. Source: http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2011/09/29/traxler-bloomington-mortgage-fraud/

Information Technology Sector

45. September 29, threatpost – (International) Cisco patches slew of IOS bugs. Cisco patched a string of serious vulnerabilities in its IOS networking software, including some that could be used for remote code execution, and also fixed flaws in some of its other products. In all, Cisco released 10 advisories, 9 of which concerned IOS vulnerabilities. The most serious of the flaws in IOS, the company's ubiquitous network operating system, is a bug in the way the Smart Install application works on some Cisco Catalyst switches. The problem can allow an attacker to run arbitrary code on the switch. Several of the other vulnerabilities that Cisco patched in IOS are denial-of-service flaws. In addition to those problems, there also is a serious issue in the Identity Services Engine, which has a default set of credentials for its underlying database. Source: http://threatpost.com/en_us/blogs/cisco-patches-slew-ios-bugs-092911

Communications Sector

46. September 29, Baxter Bulletin – (Arkansas) Severed cable hampers communication services. Communication service was disrupted in several Arkansas counties for about 3 hours September 29 after a fiber optic cable was cut at 8 a.m. in an area between Conway and Little Rock, a CenturyLink spokesman said. Service was restored at 11:05 a.m. The cut disrupted long distance calls, 800 numbers, and some business circuits, he said. It also affected AT&T's wireless and wireline services, including 911 emergency calls, an AT&T Arkansas media relations spokeswoman said. She reported the cable was cut by a third party doing construction. Customers whose wireless services were affected were unable to make 911 emergency calls, the spokeswoman noted. She said other customers able to call 911 had location data impacted and would have had to provide their address to the 911 operator. Affected counties included part of Baxter County, as well as Marion, Boone, Newton, and Izard counties, a Baxter County Office of Emergency Management spokesman said. In addition, AT&T reported customers in Cleburne, Conway, Faulkner, Fulton, Pope, Searcy, White, and Yell counties may have been impacted. Three of the five trunk lines in the Baxter County 911 Center were not working after the cable was cut, but the center still was able to receive emergency calls, said a Baxter County 911 coordinator. The center sent out a public notice about the cut in the fiber-optic cable and reminded residents to call 911 only for emergencies. Source: http://www.baxterbulletin.com/article/20110930/NEWS01/109300318/Severed-cable-hampers-communication-services

47. September 29, KRGV 5 Weslaco – (Texas) Lightning strike causes fire at PUB facility. There are still no estimates on the cost of damage a lightning strike caused at a Brownsville, Texas, public utilities board facility September 29. The lightning hit a radio tower shortly after 12 p.m. It caused a small fire inside a storage room located near the antenna location. Fiber used in the small building and stored by the utility company was a total loss. Firefighters were called to put out the blaze. Source: http://www.krgv.com/news/local/story/Lightning-Strike-Causes-Fire-at-PUB-Facility/8dMY7ulakUq_cNCdqnI65A.cspx