MARYLAND NEWS

Two Chinese nationals living in Maryland are heading to prison after the Justice Department said they conducted a yearslong iPhone repair scheme that cost Apple $2.5 million. Source: USA Today via msn.com

Recent amendments to the Maryland Workplace Fraud Act go into effect. Employers who knowingly misclassify an employee as an independent contractor may face an increased penalty of $10,000 (previously $5,000) for each employee who was not properly classified by the employer. Source: jdsupra.com

The Integrity and Compliance Office, created by state law, gives its new leader, Frank Turner,  the power to compel testimony and subpoena information.  Source:  WTOP

According to the criminal  complaint, from at least March 2023 through July 2023, the suspect and his co-conspirators contacted the victims by mail or over the phone and convinced them that they had won millions of dollars in a lottery or sweepstakes but were required to send payment in advance for taxes and other fees before they could receive their winnings.  The suspect and his co-conspirators caused the victims to send payments for the purported taxes and other fees through wire transfer, by gift card, by sending cash or checks through the U.S. Mail, by other interstate commercial carrier, and by other payment methods.  According to the complaint, the victims lost at least $9.5 million to the lottery scheme. Source: US Attorney, District of Maryland

Both the shelter vendor and the hotel owner were reimbursed for the same food services at the Holiday Inn Express, located next to the Horseshoe Casino on Russell Street. Source Baltimore Brew and Baltimore City OIG

Of the nearly 58,000 complaints of these scams, about 1,400 were in Maryland, costing Marylander's almost $94 million. The most common occurrence of these scams, according to the report, was investment scams. Source: WJZ, CBS News and FBI's 2023 Cryptocurrency Fraud Report

Federal authorities have uncovered a major scandal involving a former District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) staffer and a vendor, accused of engaging in a long-running bribery scheme that defrauded the public school system...A former DCPS employee from Hyattsville, Maryland, has been indicted for conspiracy to commit bribery and wire fraud…According to the indictment, the school employee accepted payments from multiple vendors over at least 5 years in exchange for steering business to them.  According to the indictment, some of the payments were generated from falsified orders awarded to the vendor. Source: www.USA9.com  and www.fbi.gov.

Federal prosecutors have dropped their criminal case against a Maryland attorney whom they accused of engaging in a scheme to fraudulently access more than $12.5 million in Somali government assets…In a court filing, prosecutors cited their “assessment of pre-trial evidentiary rulings” as one of the reasons for dismissing the indictment. Source: ABC News

City employee fraudulently obtained more than $138,000 in COVID-19 relief benefits and took more than $250,000 in bribes that caused losses to Baltimore City in excess of $1,250,000… The Defendant also admitted to engaging in a bribery scheme for over eight years, whereby, in exchange for bribes from various property owners in Baltimore City (the “City”), the Defendant would use his official position as an employee of the City to extinguish various financial obligations owed to the City, including for water bills and property taxes. Source: US Attorney, District of Maryland

Used the Proceeds to Purchase Property, a Luxury Vehicle and Pay His Personal Expenses. Source: US Attorney, District of Maryland. Source: US Attorney, District of Maryland