#cantmakethisfraudup
“I am always fascinated by interesting, strange but true fraud cases, and I recently stumbled across the #cantmakethisfraudup Twitter hashtag.”
Here are some of the ones that stood out for me:
An employee was charged with embezzling from one company, placed on probation and then embezzled from her new employer to pay some restitution to her first employer. She claimed (falsely) that she had cancer and wanted the money for treatment. Instead, she used most of the money for trips to Hawaii and the Bahamas, jewelry, a Ford Mustang car, dance classes, clothing and electronic equipment.
The motto: know your employees, check references and maybe do a Police Check!
Senior officials at an elephant sanctuary were falsifying the vehicle log books for trucks used to dispose of the dung and no proper records were kept of the contracted vehicles. A lot of smaller vehicles were used (than had been contracted) which meant more trips and more $ claimed. More than $1.1mill USD was stolen!!
The motto: always have someone double check travel claims, and know how your dung is disposed of 😊
A psychic was arrested for fraud after telling a woman she would never find true love unless she bought her a 9.2 caret diamond ring. The woman bought the ring at a cost of more than $700,000 USD and gave it to the psychic. She probably didn’t find love and that’s how the fraud was uncovered!
The motto: go to a better psychic – she should have predicted she would be arrested 😲
A Detroit rapper was arrested for credit card fraud after he boasted about committing credit card fraud in a song 🤦
The motto: don’t brag about your fraud in a rap song
Personal assistant used bosses credit card to fund spending sprees that included luxury cosmetics, stationery and restaurants. She also used the card for cash withdrawals
The motto: always check credit card statements and have good policies and procedures around spending
A Nigerian clerk claimed that money she had collected from students had in fact been swallowed by a snake! She later confessed to auditors to stealing the money
The motto: always have 2 people present for money collection and handling, and someone independent recording the transaction; also don’t take your snake to work ……..just in case 🐍
An accountant stole millions of $ when working as a personal accountant by forging signatures on bank documents to secure loans for himself. He used the money to buy more than two dozen homes, private jets, yachts and a Lamborghini car dealership!
The motto: nobody earns that much money as an accountant! Follow the money….
An employee of an interior design company diverted more than $500,000 USD of customer payments to her own bank account over a three-year period. The fraud was discovered when the company owner decided to have a look at the books – finally.
The motto: Understand your financials, know what the reports mean, use an independent bookkeeper!
Small business owners are busy people. They are good at what they do, but setting up systems that protect their cash, their stock, or their time might not be a strong point.
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