Source: United States Department of Justice News
A Georgia woman pleaded guilty today in the Northern District of Georgia for perpetrating a scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $7.9 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
WASHINGTON – An Ohio man pleaded guilty today to a money laundering conspiracy arising from his operation of Helix, a Darknet-based cryptocurrency laundering service. According to court documents, Larry Dean Harmon, 38, of Akron, admitted that he operated Helix from 2014 to 2017. Helix functioned as a bitcoin “mixer” or “tumbler,” allowing customers, for a fee, to send bitcoin to designated recipients in a manner that was designed to conceal the source or owner of the bitcoin. Helix was linked to and associated with “Grams,” a Darknet search engine also run by Harmon. Harmon advertised Helix to customers on the Darknet to conceal transactions from law enforcement.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)
Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch, Jr., today, joined by a dozen community leaders, announced the rollout of a public awareness campaign aimed at informing the public about the FBI’s role in investigating hate crimes, and encouraged people to report hate crimes that they have witnessed or experienced to 1-800-CALL-FBI or tips.fbi.gov.
Beginning in August 2021 and continuing until early November, residents and commuters in New Jersey will see the “Protecting Our Communities Together” messages on New Jersey Transit buses, in rail stations, on trains, on billboards along major New Jersey roadways, and in digital ads on various websites. The message will also be carried through our outreach efforts and multiple community partnerships.
“First, we want the public to be aware that the FBI investigates these matters and places a very high level of priority on such incidents,” said Special Agent in Charge Crouch. “Second, we want victims and witnesses to feel secure in the fact that when they report incidents to us, we respect and value their privacy. Finally, we will be engaging more with those communities that may hesitate to report due to a lack of interaction with—or trust in—law enforcement. We can better protect the members of our communities when we work together.”
Hate crimes are the highest priority for the FBI’s civil rights program. A federal hate crime involves physical harm, threats, or intimidation based on bias toward an individual or group because of race, religion, gender, gender identity, physical limitations, national origin, or sexual orientation. New Jersey has experienced a rise in hate crimes in the past two years, especially with respect to race. Yet, the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Statistics believes the majority of hate crimes go unreported.
The FBI’s jurisdiction to investigate hate crimes is predicated on four federal statutes which include: 18USC245/247/249, and 42USC3631. While New Jersey’s state law includes bias incidents that don’t necessarily involve criminal activity, the FBI works closely with our state and local partners, even if a case may not result in federal charges.
Attending today’s press conference were representatives of the Hispanic, LGBTQ, Orthodox Jewish, Asian Indian, and Faith communities.
The messaging has been translated into 17 languages including Arabic, Bengali, Chinese-simplified, Chinese-traditional, Eastern Punjabi, French, Hebrew, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, Urdu, Vietnamese, and Yiddish.
As part of a national advertising campaign, the FBI’s 56 field offices received funding to promote awareness and encourage reporting to the 1-800-CALL-FBI number as well as through tips.fbi.gov.
Source: United States Department of Justice 2
In a key step toward implementing the Administration’s blueprint for a fair, orderly, and humane immigration system, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are publishing a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that would amend current regulations to improve the processing of asylum claims.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)
Welcome to the Oregon FBI’s Tech Tuesday segment. Today: Building a digital defense against fake COVID-19 vaccine ID cards.
The Delta variant is causing many Oregon governments, schools, and businesses to issue new mandates concerning vaccines, testing, and mask-wearing. While we all learn to navigate this new world, one thing is clear: more and more of us will be asked to prove that we are vaccinated. For some people, their employer may require it. For others, it may be the neighborhood restaurant or bar owner who wants to know your status before you are allowed to enter. At this point, that vaccination card you received when you got your shots is like gold. It’s not surprising that scammers are trying to make a buck on the situation by creating fraudulent cards… but there is also concern that unvaccinated people are looking to skirt the rules with unauthorized fakes.
The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center—or IC3.gov—issued a warning about this problem earlier this year. With the virus resurgence, though, it is time for a refresher. If you did not receive the vaccine, do not buy fake vaccine cards, do not make your own vaccine cards, and do not fill-in blank vaccination record cards with false information. By misrepresenting yourself as vaccinated when entering schools, mass transit, workplaces, gyms, or places of worship, you put yourself and others around you at risk of contracting COVID-19.
Additionally, you need to know that the unauthorized use of a government agency’s seal is a violation of federal law. This includes the seals for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Because individuals may use fake vaccine cards to misrepresent themselves as vaccinated, we strongly encourage businesses, schools, places of worship, and government agencies to follow CDC guidance when it comes to distancing, masking, and vaccinations.
If you believe are a victim of an online scam, you should report the incident to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov or call your FBI local office.