Wednesday, November 26, 2014



Complete DHS Report for November 26, 2014

Daily Report

Top Stories

 • Sixteen individuals were charged for allegedly running a telemarketing scheme that advertised real estate in Detroit at falsified prices to ensnare investors in a $20 million fraud scheme. – U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Michigan See item 5 below in the Financial Services Sector

 • About 2.5 acres of greenhouses at Amos Zittel & Sons Inc., in Eden, New York, collapsed due to heavy snow that accumulated during the week of November 17, causing several million dollars in damage. – Buffalo Business First
13. November 24, Buffalo Business First – (New York) Several greenhouses collapse at Amos Zittel & Sons. About 2.5 acres of greenhouses at Amos Zittel & Sons Inc., in Eden, New York, collapsed due to heavy snow that accumulated during the week of November 17. Damage was estimated to total several million dollars. Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/news/2014/11/21/several-greenhouses-collapse-at-amos-zittel-sons.html?page=all

 • The former vice president of Carson Helicopters pleaded guilty November 24 to defrauding the U.S. Forest Service by submitting false information about helicopter payload capabilities in a bid process for a contract tied to a 2008 helicopter crash in California that killed 9 people. – Portland Oregonian
17. November 25, Portland Oregonian – (Oregon; California) Former Oregon helicopter official guilty of fraud scheme linked to deadly 2008 chopper crash. The U.S. attorney’s office for Oregon announced that the former vice president of Carson Helicopters pleaded guilty November 24 to defrauding the U.S. Forest Service by submitting false information about helicopter payload capabilities in a bid process for a contract tied to a 2008 helicopter crash that killed 9 people near Weaverville, California. The former vice president filed fraudulent and unsafe empty-helicopter weights in order to help the company win contracts. Source: http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2014/11/former_oregon_helicopter_offic.html

 • Individuals involved in a riot that broke out after a protest November 24 in Ferguson, Missouri, looted and burned at least 12 businesses, vandalized police vehicles, and pelted police with various objects. – Associated Press
21. November 25, Associated Press – (Missouri) Family blasts prosecutor's handling of case. The governor of Missouri called in additional National Guard troops November 25 to contain a riot that broke out after a protest November 24 in Ferguson, Missouri, where individuals looted and burned at least 12 businesses, vandalized police vehicles, and pelted police with various objects. At least 18 individuals were injured and 61 individuals were arrested in connection to the riot, while around 10 flights were diverted or cancelled, and some area schools canceled classes November 25 as a precautionary measure. Source: http://news.yahoo.com/no-indictment-chaos-fills-ferguson-streets-083434303.html

Financial Services Sector

5. November 24, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Michigan – (International) Sixteen people charged in nationwide telemarketing scheme that involved thousands of homes in Detroit. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI announced charges against 16 individuals in Florida, Michigan, and New York for allegedly running a telemarketing scheme that used unsolicited calls advertising residential property in Detroit at falsified prices that ensnared investors and other buyers in a fraud scheme that led to over $20 million in losses to victims in the U.S. and Canada. Several of the accused were arrested November 21 in Florida, one individual was arrested after being extradited from Thailand, and one other remains at large overseas. Source: http://www.fbi.gov/detroit/press-releases/2014/sixteen-people-charged-in-nationwide-telemarketing-scheme-that-involved-thousands-of-homes-in-detroit

6. November 24, Bakersfield Now – (California) Bakersfield sisters guilty on federal charges in mortgage fraud case. Two Bakersfield women were convicted November 21 on fraud and conspiracy charges for defrauding mortgage lenders of around $6 million between October 2005 and May 2007 by submitting false loan applications and fraudulent supporting documentation. Three other co-conspirators previously pleaded guilty. Source: http://www.bakersfieldnow.com/news/local/Bakersfield-sisters-guilty-on-federal-charges-in-mortgage-fraud-case-283768111.html

7. November 24, Associated Press – (Connecticut) West Haven councilman pleads guilty to wire fraud. A West Haven councilman pleaded guilty November 24 to stealing $106,000 from customer accounts at his employer, JPMorgan Chase Bank in New Canaan, and disguising the embezzlement as cash withdrawals by the affected customers. He subsequently resigned from his seat on the West Haven City Council. Source: http://connecticut.cbslocal.com/2014/11/24/west-haven-councilman-pleads-guilty-to-wire-fraud/

8. November 24, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission – (Massachusetts) Court enters judgments against former Massachusetts-based boiler room operator and his companies, also indicted by grand jury. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that a federal court entered final judgments November 18 against a Massachusetts man and his group of related entities for violating federal securities laws in a boiler room scheme and ordered the man and related entities to pay a total of $37,006,590 in disgorgement of illicit gains, interest, and penalties. Parallel criminal charges were filed and are pending against the man and another individual. Source: http://www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/2014/lr23140.htm
 
Information Technology Sector
20. November 25, Help Net Security – (International) New Docker version solves critical bugs, update immediately. The developers of the Docker open source platform issued an update for the platform November 24, closing two critical vulnerabilities including one that can be used by a remote attacker to execute malicious code. Users were advised to update their installations as soon as possible. Source: http://www.net-security.org/secworld.php?id=17688

Communications Sector

Nothing to report