Fraud SCAMS AND SHAMS ILL-GOTTEN GAINS UNREAL BROKERS
BC’s wild and crazy real estate scene
THERE’S A GROWING NUMBER of mortgage fraud cases in BC involving fake incomes, phoney offshore collateral and false tax information thanks to dealers working in a burgeoning shadow-banking sector — nonregulated financial institutions. BC’s Financial Institutions Commission has seen an increase in complaints about loan-application fraud to 200 in 2016 from 109 in 2013. Some liken the situation to the sketchy loans investors were exposed to aſter the US subprime meltdown of 2008. — PC
RED ALERT Reality star’s ex-partners flipping mad
YOU’VE HEARD OF PEOPLE RENOVATING and flipping houses for profit, but what about people flipping TV shows about houses for profit? That’s what two Texas business partners are accusing reality TV star Chip Gaines of doing, and that’s why they’re suing him for US$1 million. Gaines and his wife, Joanna, star in HGTV’s popular reno show Fixer Upper. It’s about the real estate and construc- tion adventures of their company, Magnolia Homes. Problem is, Gaines’ former partners John L. Lewis and Richard L. Clark claim they founded Magnolia Realty with Gaines and he convinced them to sell their shares in it — to him — two days before HGTV picked up the show. — Peter Carter
CON LETTERS
Beware the fake email “THIS LETTER comes to you from the HR dept. It has come to our attention we have overpaid you by $400 so can you please”... oh, not really. If such an email appeared in your mailbox you’d recognize it as a fake, right? The evidence suggests otherwise. The FBI is reporting a surge in global cyberwire fraud, especially in the last few months of 2016. Most of the shams appear to be requests for pay- ment from senior corporate execu- tives or suppliers. The survey doesn’t track how much money was lost, but it is estimated the incidents collated by the FBI represent just 20% of the total. — PC
54 | CPA MAGAZINE | SEPTEMBER 2017
Not so diplomatic STIFFING CONTRACTORS, NOT PAYING landlords and doing whatever “johns” do in police raids are hardly activities you associate with the diplomatic corps. But reports from Global Affairs Canada show that foreign diplomats are racking up more unpaid debt, breaking laws and violating passport rules. The reasons for the rise in misbehaviour are not clear, though it may be related to programs and tip lines that make it easier to report problems. Among the most egregious infractions: one embassy’s $283,750 in taxes owed to the CRA, $10,000 in sala- ries owed to workers at another, and a diplomat who leſt Canada owing $4,700 to an Ottawa car dealership. — PC
CARD SWIPERS Blocked before they know it
SOME UK BANKS unearthed a few surprises when customers were asked about banking fraud. Some 66% of respondents experi- enced one fraudulent incident in the past year; 29% reported two incidences; and 5% reported three. Although some of the institutions tried to contact customers when they suspected fraudulent activity, most of the victims first heard about the frauds when their cards got blocked — and before they were informed by the banks. — PC
Donna Ward/Getty
FPM/Getty
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72
