fraud

Stories 1 - 20 |  Next >>

After Mom Died, 56-Year-Old Son Dressed Up as Her

Italian man accused of posing as dead mother to collect pension before beard stubble gave him away

(Newser) - A 56-year-old Italian man is under investigation for allegedly disguising himself as his late mother in a bizarre pension fraud reminiscent of the film Mrs. Doubtfire. Authorities say the man, a former nurse who is currently unemployed, never reported the death of his 85-year-old mother, Graziella Dall'Oglio, in 2022,...

Fired IT Guy's Revenge: A $862K Cyberattack

Waste Management to have the last laugh as ex-contractor now faces up to a decade in prison

(Newser) - A former contractor at Waste Management has admitted to hacking the company's network and resetting thousands of employee passwords, leaving workers across the US locked out of their systems, in retaliation for his firing. Maxwell Schultz, 35, of Ohio parted ways with the company in May 2021 for unclear...

Feds Charge Florida Dem With 'Selfish, Cynical' Crime

Democratic lawmaker Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick charged with stealing FEMA overpayments

(Newser) - US Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida has been indicted on charges accusing her of stealing $5 million in federal disaster funds and using some of the money to aid her 2021 special election campaign, the Justice Department said Wednesday. The Democrat is accused of stealing Federal Emergency Management Agency overpayments...

Ag Sec: Every SNAP Recipient Is Going to Have to Reapply

Move aims to remove alleged 186K dead people who are receiving aid

(Newser) - The Trump administration is planning to require all recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to reapply for benefits, citing concerns about widespread fraud, reports the Hill . Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced the move on Newsmax , saying the administration discovered that 186,000 deceased people were still receiving benefits, based...

Cops: Fortune Teller Conned 'Vulnerable' Clients Out of $46M

Australia's Anya Phan and her daughter accused in sophisticated fraud ring

(Newser) - A purported fortune teller and her daughter are accused of scamming clients, including some who complained of financial hardship, out of a whopping $46 million. Anya Phan, 53, who claimed to be a fortune teller and feng shui master, was taken into custody in an affluent neighborhood of Sydney, Australia,...

Ex-Newsom Aide Charged With Stealing Campaign Funds

Dana Williamson allegedly involved in scheme to siphon $225K from Xavier Becerra's account

(Newser) - California Gov. Gavin Newsom's former chief of staff, Dana Williamson, was arrested Wednesday on multiple fraud charges as part of a public corruption case. The indictment, reviewed by the Sacramento Bee , alleges Williamson and others conspired to divert about $225,000 from a dormant political account belonging to former...

Woman Behind 'Bleeding Mary' Statue Is Headed for Fraud Trial

Gisella Cardia, husband accused of staging miracles while collecting $423K in donations

(Newser) - An Italian woman who claimed a statue of the Virgin Mary wept tears of blood is heading to trial for fraud. Prosecutors allege Gisella Cardia and her husband, Gianni Cardia, orchestrated fake apparitions and made doomsday predictions to attract hundreds of pilgrims and a small fortune in donations in the...

Trump to Israel: Pardon Netanyahu Before Verdict

US president calls Bibi's corruption trial political, urges clemency by Israeli President Isaac Herzog

(Newser) - President Trump has formally asked Israeli President Isaac Herzog to pardon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who's currently on trial for corruption. In a letter made public by Herzog's office, Trump described Netanyahu's prosecution as politically motivated and unfair, while praising the latter's leadership during recent conflicts,...

Indictment: Pitchers Threw Balls or Strikes in Deal With Bettors

Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz face prison in MLB's biggest gambling accusations since Pete Rose

(Newser) - Two Cleveland Guardians pitchers were charged in an indictment unsealed Sunday with rigging bets on their pitches. Luis Ortiz was arrested Sunday at Boston Logan International Airport, while Emmanuel Clase remained at large, ESPN reports. The charges against both include wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering...

Fraudsters Find a Way Into Atlanta's Luxury Apartments

Social media, rising rents fuel surge in rental application scams

(Newser) - A wave of rental-application fraud is sweeping Atlanta, as rising rents and a glut of luxury apartments push desperate renters to fake their way into high-end buildings. Influencers on TikTok openly promote doctored pay stubs, fake Social Security numbers, and other fraudulent documents created using generative artificial intelligence—sometimes selling...

They Put Their Surrogacy Funds in an Escrow Account. It's Gone

The Journal recounts there's no regulation or oversight of the escrow companies involved

(Newser) - Parents can easily spend north of $150,000 to have a child through a surrogate, and many turn to specialty escrow companies who handle the money: vouching that expenses sync with the terms of the contract and doling out the parents' payments to the surrogate so long as they do....

New York AG Pleads Not Guilty in Fraud Case

Letitia James is fighting back on case against her pushed by President Trump

(Newser) - New York Attorney General Letitia James pleaded not guilty on Friday to federal charges accusing her of lying on mortgage papers to secure favorable loan terms in a case pushed by President Trump. James' first court appearance in Virginia sets the stage for a high-stakes legal battle between the Republican...

Startup Founder Sentenced for Defrauding JPMorgan Chase

Charlie Javice gets more than 7 years

(Newser) - Charlie Javice, founder of a startup that promised to revolutionize how students apply for financial aid, was sentenced Monday to more than seven years in prison for cheating JPMorgan Chase out of $175 million. Javice, 33, was convicted in March of duping the banking giant when it bought her company,...

SEC: RadioShack Revival Was a $112M Ponzi Scheme

REV founders allegedly misled investors while reviving bankrupt retail brands

(Newser) - Two men behind a company known for buying up bankrupt retail brands like RadioShack, Pier 1 Imports, and Modell's Sporting Goods now face accusations of orchestrating a $112 million Ponzi scheme. In a lawsuit filed Monday in Florida, the Securities and Exchange Commission alleges that Alex Mehr and...

Woman Who Tried to Scam Elvis' Family Is Sentenced

Lisa Findley of Missouri gets 4 years after attempt to steal Graceland from family

(Newser) - A judge in Missouri sentenced a woman to four years in prison Tuesday over a wild scheme to take ownership of Elvis Presley's Graceland estate through a bogus sale, reports the BBC . Lisa Findley's would-be scam of the Presley family revolved around the death of Lisa Marie Presley,...

'Tinder Swindler' Nabbed After Years on the Lam

Shimon Hayut, accused of defrauding Berlin woman, faces extradition from country of Georgia

(Newser) - The man featured on Netflix's The Tinder Swindler , accused of conning women out of millions of dollars , has been arrested in the country of Georgia after years on the run. Shimon Hayut, an Israeli national who gained notoriety for allegedly scamming women he met online, was detained at...

George Jones' Widow Found Love, Says She Got Scammed
George Jones' Widow Found
Love in the Wrong Place
LONGFORM
Sep 14, 2025 9:30 AM CDT

George Jones' Widow Found Love in the Wrong Place

Nancy Jones, widow of country star, was with alleged conman for 12 years

(Newser) - Nancy Jones, widow of country legend George Jones, found heartbreak long after losing her famous husband—this time not from grief, but allegedly from fraud. Nancy, now 78, had met Kirk West shortly after her famous husband's 2013 death, a vulnerable moment she now believes "wasn't...

FBI Flags Mystery Packages With Fake QR Codes
Be Careful You Don't
Become a 'Quishing' Victim
in case you missed it
Sep 14, 2025 7:00 AM CDT

Be Careful You Don't Become a 'Quishing' Victim

Recipients are being tricked into scanning malicious QR codes, per the FBI

(Newser) - The FBI is sounding the alarm on a new scam straight from the "what could possibly go wrong?" file: unsolicited packages containing only a mysterious QR code. Once just an easy way to check menus or pay for takeout, QR codes have landed on the scammer's menu....

Former Candy Exec Stole $28M From Mars

Sugar market expert Paul Steed set up fake companies

(Newser) - A former executive for a subsidiary of candymaker Mars Inc. has pleaded guilty to fraud and tax charges in connection with his theft of $28 million from the company, federal prosecutors said. Paul Steed, 58, appeared in federal court in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The Stamford resident also agreed to pay $28....

FHFA Chief Is Having a 'Pot, Meet Kettle' Moment

Records show Pulte's family claimed same tax breaks that he's slamming Fed governor for

(Newser) - Bill Pulte, a federal housing official, has publicly accused Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook of improperly claiming homestead exemptions—tax breaks for owners on their primary residence—on more than one property. However, a Reuters investigation found that Pulte's own father and stepmother, Mark and Julie Pulte, have...

Stories 1 - 20 |  Next >>
Most Read on Newser