10 White Collar Crime Cases That Made Headlines

Since the collapse of Enron a decade ago due to shoddy and deceptive accounting practices, America has become more aware of the seriousness of white collar crimes. The work of a small handful of people can result in the demise of a multi-billion dollar company, the complete loss of value of its stock, and most problematically, the loss of numerous jobs ranging from the innocent higher-ups to the hardworking office managers. The next time you hear about someone receiving a 12-year sentence because of a marijuana offense, remember the real harm done in these cases of corporate corruption.

1. Enron collapse

With revenues exceeding $100 billion and the distinction of being named by Fortune as “America’s Most Innovative Company,” Enron was a seemingly indestructible energy giant during the beginning of the 2000s. However, even during its rise in the ’90s, rumors swirled that it was involved in illegal accounting procedures with its accounting firm Arthur Anderson, then one of the “Big Five” accounting firms. Jeffrey Skilling, who served as president COO and CEO, along with a staff he assembled, hid billions of dollars of debt through poor financial reporting, accounting loopholes and the use of special purpose entities. Andrew Fastow, COO, deceived the board of directors about the company’s accounting practices and convinced Arthur Anderson to go along for the ride. After stocks plummeted, the SEC conducted an investigation that ultimately resulted in the 24-year, 4-month prison sentence of Skilling and six-year sentence of Fastow. Founder Kenneth Lay died of a heart attack before he was sentenced.

2. Worldcom accounting scandal

Enron’s impressive collapse was followed by the implosion of Worldcom, which was the doing of CEO Bernard Ebbers. His plan to compensate for the downturn of the telecommunications industry in 2000 and Worldcom’s declining stock included the use of fraudulent accounting methods in order to deceive investors into thinking the company was in good health. The underreporting of line costs and inflation of revenues accumulated $3.8 billion in fraud and ended with the company’s bankruptcy, then the largest in U.S. history. Ebbers, who resigned from Worldcom in April 2002, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for conspiracy and securities fraud and filing false statements with securities regulators.

3. Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme

The word “Ponzi” was introduced into America’s lexicon in late 2008 when Madoff was arrested and charged with securities fraud. The former lifeguard, sprinkler installer and chairman of NASDAQ managed to build a multi-billion dollar investment firm with false trading reports and without assistance from the major derivatives firms, each of which refused to trade with him. Although he had been suspected of being a sham a decade before, it wasn’t until 2008 that he was arrested after his misdeeds were reported by one of his sons. In 2009, he pled guilty to 11 federal crimes including securities fraud, money laundering, and theft from an employee benefit plan. The penalty: 150 years in prison and $170 billion in restitution — investors lost billions of dollars due to the scandal, and three people involved with the business, including Bernie’s son Mark, committed suicide.

4. InStock trading scandal

Another chapter in the white collar crime saga of the early 2000s, the InStock trading scandal made headlines because of the involvement of Martha Stewart, who sold about $230,000 of the company’s stock a day before an experimental cancer drug failed to gain FDA approval. Memorably, she was found guilty of obstruction of justice, conspiracy and lying about a stock sale, and served five months in prison. Founder Samuel Waskal, who advised friends and family to sell stock and attempted to sell his own stock prior to the announcement, pled guilty to charges of bank fraud, securities fraud, obstruction of justice and perjury. He was sentenced to a seven-year, three-month prison sentence in 2009, but was released in 2009.

5. Adelphia collapse

At the time of its bankruptcy in 2002, Adelphia was the fifth-largest cable provider in the U.S., and in 2003, it generated more than $3.6 billion in revenue — that’s just $1.3 billion more than the off-balance-sheet debt accumulated by the company, which led to its demise. John Rigas, the founder, and Timothy Rigas, his son who ran the company, are currently serving 15-and 20-year prison sentences respectively for embezzling the money from corporate investors and using corporate funds as their own. Adelphia’s run of more than 50 years officially ended in 2006 when the remainder of its revenue-generating assets were purchased by Comcast and Time Warner.

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6. tyco accounting scandal.

A year after he was named one of the top 25 corporate managers of 2001 by Business Week , it was uncovered that Tyco CEO Dennis Kozlowski, along with former CFO Mark Swartz, stole more than $150 million from the company, including $2 million that was used for a birthday party for Kozlowski’s wife that was thrown in Sardinia. The thieving men were spared after their first trial was declared a mistrial because a juror said she received a letter urging her to side with the prosecution. The second trial ended with the convictions of Kozlowski and Swartz as both were sentenced to no less than eight years and four months in prison.

7. HealthSouth accounting scandal

One of the largest comprehensive rehabilitative services companies in the country, HealthSouth had been suspected of unethical financial practices since its emergence in the late ’80s. Under the leadership of Richard Scrushy, it was discovered that it falsified at least $2.7 billion worth of profits between 1996 and 2002 and later agreed to pay $325 million for allegedly defrauding Medicare and other federal healthcare programs, according to the Department of Justice. Scrushy was acquitted of charged related to the matter, but later sentenced to a six-year, 10-month prison sentence for bribery in mail fraud in an unrelated case.

8. Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal

In an unmistakably Washington saga deserving of its own movie, Abramoff’s cluster of scandals had far-reaching consequences implicating politicians and even the mob. In 2006, he pled guilty to fraud, conspiracy and tax evasion for his efforts to cheat Indian casino gambling interests out of roughly $85 million in fees. A couple of months later, he was sentenced to 70 months in prison for using a fake wire transfer in order to qualify for a $60 million loan in the purchase of SunCruz Casinos, a deal which resulted in the murder of former owner Konstantinos “Gus” Boulis. Most notably, then-Republican Ohio Representative Bob Ney was sentenced to a prison term for accepting bribes from Abramoff, helping the Democrats in their effort to gain a majority in Congress during the 2006 midterm elections.

9. Countrywide political loan scandal (and contribution to the subprime mortgage crisis)

Politicians and big businesses need each other. And while their relationships are often too cozy, as evidenced by the Countrywide political loan scandal of 2008 and 2009, as long as campaigns are privately financed and businesses have stake in the political game, those uncomfortable relationships will continue to exist. Former Countrywide CEO Angelo Mozilo can attest to the discomfort, as his Friends of Angelo program, which provided politicians mortgage financing at noncompetitive rates, helped tarnish his already floundering reputation. He resigned on July 1, 2008 and a later reached settlement with the SEC in which he agreed to pay $67.5 million in fines because he misled shareholders regarding the internal dealings of the company.

10. Marcus Schrenker fraud and attempted fake death

Although he didn’t wield the same kind of power as guys such as Lay, Ebbers or Kozlowski, Schrenker, who owned three financial companies, accumulated a bounty of wealth as an investment advisor responsible for multi-million dollar pension funds. But it all disappeared in an instant. His failure to inform seven investors of high fees for switching annuities, and the resulting loss of $250,000, brought forth a complaint from The Indiana Department of Insurance in 2008 that intensified suspicion of his unethical practices. Ultimately, the expiration of his Indiana state financial adviser’s license prompted an investigation. In 2009, instead of facing the consequences of his action, Schrenker attempted to fake his death by faking a plane crash, parachuting out before the damage was done. He was eventually captured and sentences to four years in prison for the fiasco. He still faces charges of securities fraud.

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  • Justice Is Served: 5 Famous…

Justice Is Served: 5 Famous White Collar Crime Cases

Some of the most complex and high-profile types of criminal investigations are those involving white collar crime cases. Though the term can refer to crimes ranging from securities fraud to embezzlement to money laundering, “white collar crime” generally refers to a nonviolent crime committed for financial gain , according to Investopedia. These crimes are usually investigated by federal agencies like the FBI and Securities and Exchange Commission along with state-level agencies.

In fact, Utah established America’s first online registry for white collar criminals in 2016, Investopedia says. Those convicted of white collar crimes face prison sentences along with the potential of paying millions of dollars in financial damages and fines.

Because those involved in white collar crime are usually high-ranking business professionals and executives, serious cases usually make headlines nationwide and even globally. The following are some of the most famous (or infamous) companies and individuals involved in white collar crime cases. These examples show that, while such crimes involve large amounts of money and extensive concealment, trained law enforcement professionals are able to investigate and prosecute white collar crimes successfully.

In this famous white collar crime case, a company that was once successful resorted to schemes to hide losses and fabricate profits. Though Enron shares were worth $90.75 at its peak , they fell to just $0.67 after the company filed for bankruptcy in 2002. Some of the criminal practices involved in the Enron case included using off-balance-sheet special purpose vehicles (SPVs) in order to hide mounting debt and “toxic assets” from both investors and creditors. Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Andrew Fastow was held largely responsible for orchestrating these false business tactics.

As one of the “ biggest accounting scandals in U.S. history ,” according to CBS News, the WorldCom investigation began when internal audits found “improper accounting of more than $3.8 billion in expenses over five quarters.” These accounting irregularities did not conform to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and resulted in the resignation of senior vice president and controller David Myers, as well as layoffs for more than 17,000 WorldCom employees.

HealthSouth

In 2004, auditors discovered “ hundreds of millions of dollars in previously unreported accounting fraud at HealthSouth ,” according to The New York Times . The chain of hospitals and clinics was found to have “$2.5 billion in fraudulent accounting entries from 1996 to 2002, $500 million in incorrect accounting äó_ and other items involved in acquisitions from 1994 to 1999, and $800 million to $1.6 billion in ‘aggressive accounting’ from 1992 to March 2003,” the same article reports. This brought the total range of fraudulent entries to a staggering $3.8 billion to $4.6 billion. Founder Richard M. Scrushy was indicted on 84 counts of fraud, and at least five former CFOs pleaded guilty to charges.

Bernard Madoff

Perhaps the most well-known white collar criminal is Bernard Madoff, who was convicted of fraud costing investors $65 billion in 2009. The wealth management portion of his business took money from investors to pay former investors, without ever actually investing funds. Madoff, the former chairman of Nasdaq and founder of a successful Wall Street firm, was sentenced to 150 years in prison for running “an elaborate Ponzi scheme , which promised large returns on investments,” Investopedia says.

Wells Fargo

One of the most recent instances of a white collar crime case involves Wells Fargo, a banking and financial services provider. In 2016, “federal regulators said Wells Fargo (WFC) employees secretly created millions of unauthorized bank and credit card accounts äóî without their customers knowing it äóî since 2011,” CNN Money says.

Opening some 1.5 million fraudulent deposit accounts and submitting 565,443 credit card applications allowed employees to hit unrealistic sales targets and receive bonuses. Customers were then wrongly charged fees for accounts they didn’t know existed. Wells Fargo must pay $185 million in fines and refund $5 million to affected customers. This is the largest penalty since the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was founded in 2011.

Stopping White Collar Crime: Criminal Justice Education at King University

Fighting white collar crime requires law enforcement to look beyond traditional offenses and hold corrupt businesses and corporations accountable. Earning a criminal justice degree can help qualify you for careers that help keep communities safe and prevent crimes like those discussed here.

King University’s online Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice teaches you vital knowledge and skills related to law enforcement, restorative justice, and other key topics. This King degree can be completed in as little as 16 months, and graduates are prepared for careers in fields such as state and federal law enforcement and the court system.

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7 Famous White-Collar Crime Cases

November 25, 2020

white collar crime cases

Whether it’s insider trading, money laundering or general financial gimmickry, white-collar crime takes a heavy toll on society. Here are 7 famous white-collar crime cases that shaped history and criminal law .

Martha Stewart’s insider trading

The well-known retailer entrepreneur owned stock in ImClone, a biotech company. She was given a tip that ImClone’s experimental cancer drug was going to be denied FDA approval. One day before the denial went public, Stewart sold her stock. The gambit netted her $230,000 and also protected her from the losses other investors were hit with.

The tip came from stockbroker Peter Bacanovic. The Securities & Exchange Commission took a dim view of the idea that Stewart had just gotten lucky and began an investigation of insider trading. Stewart was convicted, for both the crime itself and for obstruction of justice. She served 5 months in prison.

Al Capone’s tax evasion

The Chicago mobster made a fortune during Prohibition through bootlegging alcohol, extortion, murder and other mafia rackets. Capone’s control of his organization was tight enough that authorities could never pin him down, not even on the famous St. Valentine’s Day Massacre.  But an accounting mistake did.

Capone had $215,000 in taxes that were unpaid. It was federal agent Eliot Ness and his investigative team that uncovered the delinquent taxes. Capone was sentenced to 11 years in prison. As justice goes, it was less than perfect, but it was something. The 1987 movie The Untouchables , with Capone portrayed by Robert DeNiro and Ness played by Kevin Costner, tells this story.

The energy company was grossing revenue in excess of $100 billion and named as “America’s Most Innovative Company” by Fortune Magazine in the early 2000s. But there were rumors of shady accounting practices, involving Chief Financial Officer Andrew Fastow and the accounting firm of Arthur Anderson.

It turns out the rumors were true and it was more than a misplaced decimal point. Accounting loopholes had been used to hide billions of dollars in debt from Enron’s board of directors. Fastow, as the instigator of the tactics, was charged with using so-called “special purpose vehicles” away from the balance sheet to hide the company’s true financial position.

Fastow was convicted and received a 6-year prison sentence. Enron stock, once worth as much as $90.75 per share , fell to $0.26 just prior to the bankruptcy filing.

The telecommunications industry was in a downturn in 2000. The response of WorldCom CEO Bernard Ebbers? An accounting scheme that entailed underreporting costs and inflating claimed revenues.

The use of the fraudulent methodology was aimed at deceiving investors and its cost was estimated at nearly $4 billion in just over a year. The fallout reached Washington D.C., where legislation was enacted to close loopholes that companies might use to defraud investors. Ebbers was sentenced to a 25-year prison term.

HealthSouth

A rehabilitative services company, HealthSouth had been viewed with a skeptical eye going back to the 1980s. It was the 7-year period from 1996 to 2002 where HealthSouth finally got caught.

Richard Scrushy, the founder of HealthSouth, reportedly refused to admit the company had missed its earnings targets by a lot. The company was found guilty of defrauding government healthcare programs, most notably Medicare. They had falsified nearly $3 billion in profits.

Justice came up short on the first go-around in court, with Scrushy acquitted of all 84 counts filed against him. But 3 years later, he was convicted on separate charges of money laundering, extortion and racketeering, among other crimes. He was sentenced to 6 years in prison.

Bernie Madoff

Madoff holds the dubious distinction of introducing the phrase “ Ponzi scheme ” into the American lexicon. In a nutshell, a Ponzi scheme uses the money from recent investors to pay off investors who came on board earlier. The scheme, rather than earn a legitimate return on investment, simply keeps money flowing in and out while skimming off the top.

Madoff’s Ponzi scheme was the biggest in American history, estimated at nearly $65 billion. He was arrested in 2008, pled guilty to 11 counts of securities fraud and money laundering and was sentenced to 150 years in prison. Madoff was also ordered to make $170 billion in restitution to the investors. He remains in prison and, tragically, his son Mark committed suicide.

Marcus Schrenker

Schrenker was an investment advisor responsible for multi-million dollar pension funds. He lost it all, failed to inform investors of high fees for switching annuities and lost a quarter of a million dollars.

On its face, the Schrenker case has nowhere near the financial implications of others discussed in this space. It does have a bizarre plot twist. Schrenker tried to escape by faking his own death. But it turns out, such plans work better in Hollywood than in the real world. He was captured and his current 4-year prison term may increase as further charges on securities fraud continue to be brought forward.

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Trusted White-Collar Offenders

Global Cases Studies of Crime Convenience

  • Petter Gottschalk 0

Department of Leadership and Organizational Behaviour, BI Norwegian Business School, Oslo, Norway

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Examines power, authority and white-collar crime across global case studies

Accessibly written and engaging

Examines women and white-collar crime

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Table of contents (12 chapters)

Front matter, introduction.

Petter Gottschalk

Theoretical Perspectives

Theory of crime convenience, potential offenders v. non-offenders, white-collar crime seriousness, case studies, chair of the board, chief executive officer, trusted female offenders, convenience dynamics, gender fraction stage model, crime convenience evolution, forecasting crime occurrence, white-collar community, back matter.

  • corporate crime
  • criminal behavior
  • crime theory
  • business crime
  • crime prevention
  • women and white-collar crime
  • business ethics
  • crime and power
  • organizational behavior
  • corporate fraud

Petter Gottschalk is Professor in the Department of Leadership and Organizational Behavior at BI Norwegian Business School, Norway. Dr Gottschalk has published extensively on knowledge management, white-collar crime, fraud investigations, and convenience theory. Before joining academia, he held executive positions in business enterprises.

Book Title : Trusted White-Collar Offenders

Book Subtitle : Global Cases Studies of Crime Convenience

Authors : Petter Gottschalk

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-73862-4

Publisher : Palgrave Macmillan Cham

eBook Packages : Law and Criminology , Law and Criminology (R0)

Copyright Information : The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021

Hardcover ISBN : 978-3-030-73861-7 Published: 25 April 2021

Softcover ISBN : 978-3-030-73864-8 Published: 26 April 2022

eBook ISBN : 978-3-030-73862-4 Published: 24 April 2021

Edition Number : 1

Number of Pages : XIII, 355

Number of Illustrations : 37 b/w illustrations, 1 illustrations in colour

Topics : White Collar Crime , Crime Control and Security , Criminological Theory , Criminal Behavior , Business Ethics , Management Education

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  • White Collar and Corporate...

White Collar and Corporate Crime: A Case Study Approach

  • Laura Pinto Hansen

This timely and engaging text introduces the key topics in White Collar Crime, while providing an overview of both organizational and criminological theory. Throughout the text, Law in the Real World examples and in-depth Case Studies offer the opportunity to apply the theoretical to actual situations. Throughout the text, experienced author Laura Pinto Hansen discusses the cultural and structural reasons for why white collar crime happens, even in the most regulated of industries, including financial markets and medicine. White Collar and Corporate Crime: A Case Study Approach provides the perfect introduction to the world of white collar crime.

Professors and students will benefit from:

  • Law in the Real World feature explores both well-known and lesser known examples of white collar crime, providing exposure to a wide variety of crimes in an understandable context. Discussion questions encourage students to analyze these examples in more depth.
  • Case Studies provide an opportunity to dive deeper into a single white collar crime case related to the specific chapter.
  • Broad coverage of a wide range of topics in a readable and engaging style. Chapters include chapter objectives, a glossary of key terms, and chapter summaries to help students understand new concepts.
  • An introductory chapter that familiarizes students with how organizations are supposed to work, in theory, if they plan on functioning within legal boundaries.
  • Coverage of the role of social networks in white collar crime, including its theory and terminology and use in criminal investigations in Chapter 3
  • Examination of the intersection of cybercrime and white collar crime in Chapter 7
  • Timely coverage, including the recent impeachment proceedings and effects of COVID-19

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The Washington Post

Democrats urge DOJ to get tougher on white-collar criminals

Every night, local television news blares about crime on the streets, fostering fear of muggings, carjackings and killings. Meanwhile, white-collar crime gets far less notice — but it is far more expensive.

Now, Congress is bringing more attention to white-collar and corporate crooks through bicameral legislation that would require the Department of Justice to gather, analyze and publish data on federal corporate crime. The sponsors aim for greater oversight, enforcement and deterrence.

“While the Department of Justice regularly collects data on nearly every type of street-level crime, there is very little reporting of corporate and white-collar crimes, with the last thorough DOJ report on corporate crime being in 1979,” said Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.), as she introduced the House bill. “Without data or transparency, lawmakers, journalists and the public are left in the dark about the size and scope of corporate crime in America and the effectiveness of the federal government’s response.”

The size and scope of corporate crime are massive, with an annual price tag exceeding $300 billion, according to FBI data cited by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). The street crime tab, by comparison, is a meager $16 billion.

Yet, while corporate crime costs much more, it is prosecuted far less, Durbin told a pre-Christmas Senate hearing , colorfully titled “Cleaning Up the C-Suite: Ensuring Accountability for Corporate Criminals.”

As corporate-crime costs soar, Justice lacks resources “to battle deep-pocketed corporations,” Durbin lamented. The department regularly forgoes corporate, criminal prosecutions, he said, opting instead for better-behavior agreements with company bosses. Too few resources, he added, “is a bipartisan failing.”

In response, a Justice spokesperson said the department “is focused on the impact of our prosecutions, not just the number of them. We pour resources into bringing the most serious cases against the most significant wrongdoers.”

The opioid outrage involving Purdue Pharma and its Sackler family owners was mentioned repeatedly at the hearing as an example of big-business individuals not being prosecuted. Currently, the Supreme Court is examining the legality of a financial plan the company accepted after declaring bankruptcy in 2019. Purdue faced lawsuits that accused the firm of fueling widespread opioid addiction by pushing the OxyContin painkiller.

“Why was no criminal action brought against the Sacklers?” Durbin asked at the hearing.

Nicole Argentieri, DOJ’s acting assistant attorney general for the Criminal Division, responded, saying, “We follow the facts and the law and we apply the principles of federal prosecution.”

But for Durbin, “the message is basically if you’ve got enough money, you can game the system and walk away with plenty of billions when it’s left over.”

Purdue Pharma declined to comment.

Ryan Hampton, a 43-year-old recovering opioid addict in Las Vegas, complained to senators that “the notion that certain executives at select companies are simply too big to jail has caused tremendous harm to American citizens and has eroded the public’s trust in our institutions.” While “pharmaceutical companies have pled guilty to major federal crimes and settled multibillion-dollar lawsuits,” he added, “justice has still not materialized for victims.” Hampton told me he’ll celebrate nine years clean on Feb. 2, after being hooked for a decade.

Justice officials rebuff the notion that corporate criminals escape punishment. “The Department is committed to holding accountable those who engage in the most significant wrongdoing,” its statement said, “and to accomplish this, the Department targets its resources on the most impactful cases supported by the facts and the law.”

During the hearing, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) questioned department policy encouraging corporate prosecutions to “lean towards leniency,” while there is no analog “if the defendant is a human being.”

In response, DOJ pointed to a Justice Manual passage that says, “Corporations should not be treated leniently because of their artificial nature nor should they be subject to harsher treatment.” But to Whitehouse’s point, the manual also says prosecutors “may take into account the possibly substantial consequences to a corporation’s employees, investors, pensioners, and customers, many of whom may, depending on the size and nature of the corporation and their role in its operations, have played no role in the criminal conduct, have been unaware of it, have been unable to prevent it, or have been victimized by it.” Street crime offenders, or their relatives who played no role in criminal conduct, aren’t offered the same specified consideration.

If the Durbin-Scanlon legislation exposes racial factors in corporate crime prosecution, it could help expose prosecution biases. “Identifying racial disparities in enforcement and sentencing is an important reason for data collection and transparency,” said a congressional aide, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of committee policy. “It’s important to note that even within white-collar prosecutions, there are racial disparities in outcomes.”

Compared to White males, Black men convicted of fraud received prison sentences more than 9 percent longer, and Hispanic males were given almost 13 percent more time, according to the U.S. Sentencing Commission’s November 2023 Demographic Differences in Federal Sentencing report. Men categorized as “other race,” however, were penalized with 6 percent less time than White males.

Whatever the race of those penalized, they are probably among those Durbin called the “little guys.”

“What does it say about the system of justice in America,” he wondered as he adjourned the hearing, “if the big guys are exempt and the little guys go to jail for possession of a handful of crack cocaine for long periods of time?”

Democrats urge DOJ to get tougher on white-collar criminals

IMAGES

  1. White Collar Crime Fact Sheet

    white collar crime case studies

  2. Introduction to Corporate and White-Collar Crime

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  3. “White Collar Crime”

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  4. (PDF) White-Collar Crime

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  5. White Collar Crime: Case Studies

    white collar crime case studies

  6. Edwin Sutherland & White Collar Crime

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COMMENTS

  1. 10 White Collar Crime Cases That Made Headlines

    InStock trading scandal Another chapter in the white collar crime saga of the early 2000s, the InStock trading scandal made headlines because of the involvement of Martha Stewart, who sold about $230,000 of the company's stock a day before an experimental cancer drug failed to gain FDA approval.

  2. Justice Is Served: 5 Famous White Collar Crime Cases

    Enron In this famous white collar crime case, a company that was once successful resorted to schemes to hide losses and fabricate profits. Though Enron shares were worth $90.75 at its peak, they fell to just $0.67 after the company filed for bankruptcy in 2002.

  3. 7 Famous White-Collar Crime Cases

    November 25, 2020 Whether it's insider trading, money laundering or general financial gimmickry, white-collar crime takes a heavy toll on society. Here are 7 famous white-collar crime cases that shaped history and criminal law. Martha Stewart's insider trading The well-known retailer entrepreneur owned stock in ImClone, a biotech company.

  4. Private policing of white-collar crime: case studies of internal

    Private policing of white-collar crime: case studies of internal investigations by fraud examiners Petter Gottschalk Pages 717-738 | Received 13 Sep 2018, Accepted 25 Jun 2020, Published online: 04 Jul 2020 Cite this article https://doi.org/10.1080/15614263.2020.1789461 In this article Full Article Figures & data References Citations Metrics

  5. PDF White Collar Crime: Cases, Materials, and Problems

    Business enterprises--Corrupt practices--Case studies. I. Jordan, Sandra D., author. II. Title. KF9350.S78 2015 345.73'0268--dc23 ... We also believe that the study of white collar law and practice raises unique issues of criminal law and justice policy, and ... White Collar Crime, Federal Criminal Law, Corporate Crime, and related subjects. The

  6. Full article: Convenience in white-collar crime: a case study of

    Convenience in white-collar crime: a case study of corruption among friends in Norway Petter Gottschalk Department of Leadership and Organizational Behavior, BI Norwegian Business School, Oslo, Norway [email protected] View further author information Received 17 Oct 2019Accepted 25 Jan 2020Published online: 02 Feb 2020 Cite this article

  7. Statistical Analysis of White-Collar Crime

    Summary As far back as the 19th century, statistics on reported crime have been relied upon as a means to understand and explain the nature and prevalence of crime (Friedrichs, 2007). Measurements of crime help us understand how much of it occurs on a yearly basis, where it occurs, and the costs to our society as a whole.

  8. White Collar Crime: Case Studies

    15K views Fraud Various types of fraud are one of the most common white collar crimes. In general, fraud means deception or misrepresentation in some way. For something to be classified as...

  9. Trusted White-Collar Offenders: Global Cases Studies of Crime

    Examines power, authority and white-collar crime across global case studies Accessibly written and engaging Examines women and white-collar crime 1246 Accesses 1 Citations 1 Altmetric Sections Table of contents About this book Keywords Authors and Affiliations About the author Bibliographic Information Publish with us

  10. A Black Box Warning: The Marginalization of White-Collar Crime

    The study of white-collar crime, including specific areas in state, corporate, and occupational, has grown exponentially since the 1940s, though during this time period recognizing and identifying characteristics of victims received far less attention (Geis, 1975; Gerber & Weeks, 1992; Moore & Mills, 1990).The 21st century represents a landmark era for victimology as a serious area of academic ...

  11. The whiteness of white-collar crime in the United States: Examining the

    White-collar crime scholars explain how cultural values are able to permeate workplaces because of efforts to isolate employees from outside influences. ... (2018) Using meta-analysis under conditions of definitional ambiguity: The case of corporate crime. Criminal Justice Studies 31: 38-61. Crossref. Google Scholar. Rostain T, Regan MC Jr ...

  12. Full article: Convenience in White-Collar Crime: A Case Study of

    The theory of convenience suggests that characteristics of white-collar offenders include motive, opportunity, and willingness for deviant behavior. This article discussed the case offenders developing and supporting the software platform Popcorn Time. The motive seems to be sensation seeking with a deviant identity.

  13. Technology, White-Collar Cybercrime, and White-Collar Crime: An

    Few studies have considered the impact of technology on white-collar crime. This study examines the use of technology in white-collar cybercrimes and compares them to other varieties of white-collar crime using a sample of convicted offenders from Utah's white-collar criminal registry.

  14. Convenience in white-collar crime: A case study of corruption among

    The theory of convenience is an emerging approach to explain the occurrence of white-collar crime. Convenience theory suggests that there is a financial motive enabling the offender to exploit possibilities and avoid threats, an organizational opportunity to commit and conceal crime, and a personal willingness for deviant behavior. This article tests the theory by a case study of a logistics ...

  15. Explosion fraudsters committed 'white collar' mass murder

    18 January 2019 The killers lit 86 litres of petrol in the basement of a shop to benefit from a £330,000 payout Three men have been sentenced at Leicester Crown Court for the murder of five people...

  16. White Collar Crime: Cases, Material, and Problems

    Abstract. It is hard to overstate the impact that white collar crime has on the United States. According to recent estimates from the Federal Bureau of Investigations, the annual economic loss attributable to white collar crime is at least twenty times greater than the economic loss attributable to every other sort of crime combined: $300 billion/year (minimum) versus $15 billion/year.

  17. White Collar and Corporate Crime: A Case Study Approach

    Case Studies provide an opportunity to dive deeper into a single white collar crime case related to the specific chapter. Broad coverage of a wide range of topics in a readable and engaging style. Chapters include chapter objectives, a glossary of key terms, and chapter summaries to help students understand new concepts.

  18. Convenience Triangle In White-Collar Crime: Case Studies Of Fraud

    Convenience Triangle In White-Collar Crime: Case Studies Of Fraud Examinations Author: Petter Gottschalk Publisher: Cheltenham Glos (UK): Edward Elgar Publishing, 2019. 296p. Reviewer: Viviana I. Vasiu | May 2021 The concept of white-collar crime was coined by Edwin Sutherland in his 1939 speech to the American Sociological Society.

  19. International White Collar Crime Cases and Materials

    Newly revised and expanded, the second edition of International White Collar Crime incorporates recent developments and updated case studies. New chapters on environmental crimes and securities enforcement under the Dodd-Frank Act continue to make it an essential tool for practicing business, law, and law enforcement.

  20. Convenience Triangle in White-Collar Crime: An Empirical Study of

    White-collar crime is a financial crime committed in an organizational setting where offenders have legitimate access to resources to commit and conceal crime (Sutherland 1983). ... "Review of the Book 'convenience Triangle in White-Collar Crime: Case Studies of Fraud Examinations'." ChoiceConnect 57 (5), p.1. Middletown, CT ...

  21. Private policing of white-collar crime: case studies of internal

    Private policing of white-collar crime has been a controversial issue for quite some time. Fraud examiners from global auditing firms and local law firms conduct internal investigations, resulting in reports of investigations that are the clients' confidential property.

  22. Democrats urge DOJ to get tougher on white-collar criminals

    "While the Department of Justice regularly collects data on nearly every type of street-level crime, there is very little reporting of corporate and white-collar crimes, with the last thorough ...