White Collar Crime Ponzi Scheme with a Focus on Bernard...

White Collar Crime: Ponzi Scheme with a Focus on Bernard Madoff NAME College White Collar Crime: Ponzi Scheme with a Focus on Bernard Madoff Most people, when they hear the word â€Å"crime,† think about street crime or violent crime such as murder, rape, theft, or drugs. However, there is another type of crime that has cost people their life savings, investors’ billions of dollars, and has had significant impacts of multiple lives; it is called white collar crime. The Federal Bureau of Investigation defines white collar crime as illegal acts which are characterized by deceit, concealment, or violation of trust and which are not dependent upon the application or threat of physical force or violence. Individuals and organizations†¦show more content†¦One victim, Michael Bienes, after being asked if he ever suspected that Madoff was up to no good, he responded, â€Å"Up to no good? He was a god. He was my life† (Lewis, 2011). Another victim describes him as â€Å"an approachable man† that â€Å"everyone looked up to†¦and respected† (Lewis, 2011). Carmen Dell’Orefice, former companion of Madoff’s â€Å"best friend,† Norman Levy, stated that â€Å"I think of him as always smiling,† â€Å"quiet and caring,† â€Å"shy, but so sure of himself† (Lewis, 2011). â€Å"He was able to fool a great many people for a very long time† (Lewis, 2011). Many times in a Ponzi scheme the offender targets people they do not know personally but not Madoff. He had family, friends, employees and even charities and non-profit organizations as investors. â€Å"He tapped local money pulled in from country clubs and charity dinners, where investors sought him out to casually plead with him to manage their savings so they could start reaping the steady, solid returns their envied friends were getting† (Colesanti, 2012). â€Å"Levy invested $100,000† for Dell’Orefice, who felt honored to be a part of the â€Å"exclusive fund† (Lewis, 2010). Sheryl Weinstein, who wa s a friend of Madoffs for nearly 24 years, lost her entire savings to Madoff’s Ponzi scheme. â€Å"The charitable foundation of philanthropist Carl Shapiro had invested about 45 percent of its assets ($345 million) in Madoffs fund† (Auerbach, 2009). It is â€Å"estimated that Madoffs scam cost Jewish philanthropies at least $600 million, andShow MoreRelatedWhite Collar And Organized Crime Essay900 Words   |  4 PagesWhite Collar And Organized Crime In the twentieth century, White Collar and Organized Crimes have attracted the attention of the U.S. Criminal Justice System due to the greater cost to society than most normal street crime. Even with the new attention by the Criminal Justice System, both are still pretty unknown to the general public. Although we know it occurs, due to the lack of coverage and information, society does not realize the extent of these crimes or the impact. White Collar and OrganizedRead MoreBernie Madoff Case Study4737 Words   |  19 PagesThe Fraud of the Century: The Case of Bernard Madoff The fraud perpetrated by Bernard Madoff which was discovered in December, 2008 is based upon a Ponzi scheme. Madoff took money from new investors to pay earnings for existing customers. The greater the payout to retiring and withdrawing customer, the more revenue or clients he would need to start and â€Å"investment relationship† with Madoff. The Ponzi scheme was named after Charles Ponzi who in the early 20th Century, saw a way to profit fromRead MoreMadoff4022 Words   |  17 Pageshave probably heard of a financial ploy called a Ponzi scheme. However, many may not fully understand the details or how to protect themselves from such a financial risk. A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment plan in which the investments of later investors are used to pay earlier investors, giving the appearance that the investments of the initial participants dramatically increase in value in a short amount of time. These types of financial schemes promise investors large interest retu rns if theyRead MoreThe Case of Bernard Madoff4541 Words   |  19 PagesFraud of the Century: The Case of Bernard Madoff Group No. 5: International Students é º ¥Ã§ «â€¹Ã¥ ¦ ² 98370389 é ­ Ã§ ¶ ­Ã¥ ¾ · 98370390 Ã¥ · ´Ã§Å½â€°Ã©â‚¬ £ 98370452 December 2011 Introduction We chose Bernard Madoff’s case because we thought that we could relate his case to many unethical behaviors. The analysis can be made on decision making and lack of ethical training which we think is an important topic to focus on this course. On Dec. 11, 2008, Bernard Lawrence Madoff confessed that his vaunted investmentRead MoreMadoff Scandal6132 Words   |  25 PagesVictims 14 2009 Ponzi Schemes 16 The SEC Failure 17 SEC post- Madoff 19 Hedge Fund Transparency 20 Conclusion 21 Bibliography 25 Tables Table 1: List of Madoff Clients (taken from the The New York Times, last updated June 24, 2009) 15 Table 2: 2009 Ponzi Scheme SEC Charges 17 Figures Figure 1 Fairfield Sentry vs Gateway 6 Figure 2 Madoff Investor Funds (taken from http://orgnet.com/madoff.html) 7 Introduction Operating from central Manhattan, Bernie Madoff developed the firstRead MoreThe International Organization Structure Of Organized And White Collar Crimes Essay2217 Words   |  9 Pagesfamiliar with crimes that deal with funding for terrorism or the violation of human rights in America. These crimes have increased in terms of size of groups, offenders, and activities over the past ten years. Organized and white collar crime are two of the most underrated crimes in the world. Why is this important to me is the question that most citizens will ask? A lot of individual aren’t aware of legislations or regulations created that apply to organized and white-collar crimes. This paperRead MoreEssay on White Collar Crimes in America3039 Words   |  13 Pageshistory there have been many white collar crimes. These crimes are defined as non-violent and financial-based crimes that are full ranges of fraud committed by business and government professionals. These crimes are not victi mless nor unnoticed. A single scandal can destroy a company and can lose investors millions of dollars. Today, fraud schemes are more sophisticated than ever, and through studying: Enron, LIBOR, Albert Wiggan and Chase National Bank, Lehman Brothers and Madoff, we find how the culpritsRead MoreKey Elements For Commit Fraud1673 Words   |  7 Pagesemotional ruin. For example, Joe receives an email from Prince Tiberius in Nigeria about being the recipient of $1,000,000. However, Joe needs to wire Prince Tiberius $25,000 first. Since Joe is studying fraud, he recognizes the red flags of a wire scheme and proceeds to delete the email. Without prior knowledge, Joe could have been defrauded $25,000 (Why it is important to learn about Fraud 2015). Fraud knowledge benefits stakeholders in multiple ways. By understanding how financial statement