Professor Elam

SA and National Frauds

Friday Oct  29 2021

 

Larry Roberts has pleaded guilty in the Fractac Ponzi factoring scheme.

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Does it not occur to 'investors' to hire a CPA firm to check out who is about to handle their money?

Check this out, a firm in San Antonio claimed to have been in business for thirty years and handle billions of dollars of transactions.

Turns out it was two post office boxes. .Why not hire a CP/a first?

https://www.expressnews.com/business/article/San-Antonio-grand-jury-indicts-real-estate-16519210.php?sid=5bbcfeb73f92a45e831e00e8&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headlines&utm_campaign=SAEN_210Report

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Victor Lee Farias has been sentenced to 11 year and 3 months for his $7.4 M fraud in a supposed aircraft leasing company.

As per usual he never leased anything but prayed on police officers. Many lost their life savings.

My two cents, I think it has been a mistake for CPAs to become so closely aligned with tax and audit work.  If one was going to 'invest' hundreds of thousands in  local business, why don't the investor hire a CPA firm for due diligence on the promoter? 

I am not sure prison is the right answer here. He will certainly not re pay the lost funds sitting in jail. Better he was supervised in some activity to pay something to his victims.

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Richard Cardenas gets 20 years for bouncing checks.

The checks were written to cover a phony football program. Participants were promised college scouts would recruit the better players. again why didn't the parents check this guy out.

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Good morning. Let's get down to business.

A former head of the Small Business Administration is facing criminal charges in San Antonio that he misappropriated hundreds of thousands of dollars donated to two nonprofits he’s led.

Hector Barreto, who headed the SBA for five years under President George W. Bush, was indicted by a San Antonio federal grand jury on four conspiracy charges, including to commit money laundering and wire fraud.

Barreto, 60, received more than a combined $900,000 from the Latino Coalition Foundation and Hispanic Business Roundtable Institute from 2013 through 2019, according to the indictment. He lives in Orange County, California.

San Antonio health care consultant Miguel Gutierrez, who along with Barreto allegedly had operational control over both nonprofits, was indicted on the same charges. Gutierrez also is charged with four counts of filing false tax returns.

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NFL Players plead guilty to defrauding Health Care Fund

Wed Sept 8, 2021

NFL ringleaders sought players eligible for payments from a special fund.

They then forged fake invoices for equipment and services that never took place.

Gene Upshaw NFL Player Health Reimbursement Account Plan

I thought those guys make pretty good money to start with?

What Clinton Portis and other ex-NFL players allegedly did

In the original indictment, the trio was part of a group of 12 players accused of submitting false claims for reimbursement for expensive medical equipment that was never purchased, such as hyperbaric oxygen chambers, ultrasound machines that are typically used on pregnant women, and electromagnetic therapy devices used on horses.

The ringleaders would allegedly find ex-players eligible for the program and offer to submit claims, fabricating documents and prescriptions in exchange for kickbacks.

Claims would allegedly be for about $40,000 to $50,000 and were submitted between June 2017 and Dec. 2018, eventually adding up to millions of dollars in fraud.

In addition to the three players who pleaded guilty on Tuesday, 12 other players, including former Pro Bowl wide receiver Joe Horn, have been charged and pleaded guilty.

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Well yea just never know. A sure sign of fraud is someone living a high lifestyle they could otherwise not afford. That was the case for Rita Crundwell.

Now we find a hUSAA banker dealing 20 and 50 kilos of cocaine.

Prosecuting attorneys called this living in plain sight. He had expensive homes, guns, jewelry, the works.

And 50 kilos of cocaine is a lot of cocaine. Once again professional skepticism pays off.

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https://www.etownian.com/sports/former-nba-players-charged-in-health-insurance-fraud-scheme/

 

NBA Player fraud

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Wed Sept 8, 2021

NFL ringleaders sought players eligible for payments from a special fund.

They then forged fake invoices for equipment and services that never took place.

Gene Upshaw NFL Player Health Reimbursement Account Plan

I thought those guys make pretty good money to start with?

What Clinton Portis and other ex-NFL players allegedly did

In the original indictment, the trio was part of a group of 12 players accused of submitting false claims for reimbursement for expensive medical equipment that was never purchased, such as hyperbaric oxygen chambers, ultrasound machines that are typically used on pregnant women, and electromagnetic therapy devices used on horses.

The ringleaders would allegedly find ex-players eligible for the program and offer to submit claims, fabricating documents and prescriptions in exchange for kickbacks.

Claims would allegedly be for about $40,000 to $50,000 and were submitted between June 2017 and Dec. 2018, eventually adding up to millions of dollars in fraud.

In addition to the three players who pleaded guilty on Tuesday, 12 other players, including former Pro Bowl wide receiver Joe Horn, have been charged and pleaded guilty.

_________________________

Well yea just never know. A sure sign of fraud is someone living a high lifestyle they could otherwise not afford. That was the case for Rita Crundwell.

Now we find a hUSAA banker dealing 20 and 50 kilos of cocaine.

Prosecuting attorneys called this living in plain sight. He had expensive homes, guns, jewelry, the works.

And 50 kilos of cocaine is a lot of cocaine. Once again professional skepticism pays off.

_________________________

https://www.etownian.com/sports/former-nba-players-charged-in-health-insurance-fraud-scheme/

 

NBA Player fraud

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Maximum Mood in the Making

Friday October 29 2021

Almost one of every two dollars spent in the US options market through Wednesday went to Tesl,a even though there are 5,000 other stocks to trade.

Bets on Tesla flood Options Market, WSJ today

 

We know maximum mood occurs at the end of a mania. Since exchange traded options began in 1973, I have never witnessed such a lop-sided situation. I realize the Options Exchange has rules but one has to wonder that even if Tesla stock rises, will the market makers be positioned to pay off?

$900 B was spent on Tesla options this week. That is five times the value of Tesla stock traded. When derivative trades are 5x the underlying security, we truly have a moment at or approaching maximum mood. Call options have an exercise price. The underlying stock needs to reach this exercise price to have actual intrinsic value. Incredibly on Thursday there was active trading in Tesla calls with an exercise price double the current price, $2,000.

The ratio of Tesla earnings per share to the stock price is 351. Amazon by comparison is 22.

Again this reminds one of Fall 1987, March 2000, or Fall 2007. All of these were market peaks preceding serious falls in price.

If real estate is a first derivative of stock prices, art is surely a second derivative. Art prices tend to soar with stock prices.

This spring an artist named Beepie sold a digital collage at Christie’s for $69 Million.

Beepie will sell his digital and somewhat physical statute of an astronaut for an estimated $15 M. It is covered in LED screens that will vary in content during the day. In the best spirit of imagined currencies, it comes with a corresponding Non Fungible Token.

It has such gravitas and it suck you in, said Noah Davis, Christie’s head of digital art and online sale. I don’t think readers of this column will be ‘sucked in.’

Crude oil prices remain in the mid 80s. The trend must be respected and it is still up. It would take a weekly close under $75 to suggest the trend was neutralized. Natural gas prices remain high. Putin plays his hand against Europe which has shut itself out of reliable coal fired utility plants.

Biden’s shrinking big spending plan keeps getting postponed despite the deadlines he and Nancy set. Perhaps the good news is that the Progressive Caucus, frustrated at not achieving their socialist goals, makes good on their threat to vote against the package. We can only hope.

China Debt Bomb is Ticking

Thursday Oct  28 2021

At $27 Trillion, China has a lot of corporate debt.

China has a massive amount of corporate debt. At $27 trillion, it boasts a debt-to-GDP ratio of 159%, almost 60% higher than the global rate and nearly twice that of the US, according to research published this month by S&P Global Ratings.

“China’s growth has been largely driven by two contours: One is credit, and the other is carbon,” says Eunice Tan, one of the report’s lead authors and head of credit research for S&P Global Ratings’ Asia-Pacific region.

Past financial crises are near always the result of too much debt, low interest rates, and then a collapse of the collateral supporting the debt issue.  That is exactly what is happening in China now.  Indeed this may be China's Lehman mooment.

IMA Career Day

Thursday Oct 28, 2021

Hello Dennis,

I am writing you to remind you of our upcoming virtual Student Leadership Conference on November 5^th. If you could share this information with your students and other faculty, that would be much appreciated.

The “Welcome & Announcements” will begin at 11:00 AM ET. There will be two times during the event for the Virtual Career Expo to accommodate students across the US.

Virtual career Expo Hours:

-          9:00-10:45 AM ET

-          5:20-6:00 PM ET

This conference is free to IMA Student and Academic Members. If a student wants to attend and is not a member, they can attend the conference for just $25 and that will also include one year of IMA Student Membership.

There is a cutoff for registration on November 4^th at 3 PM ET, so your students will need to register soon, which they can do here.

We are looking forward to a great event and can’t wait to see you there!

Thanks,

Tyler Skelton
Business Development Manager
IMA^® (Institute of Management Accountants)

3D House Building

Wed Oct  27 2021

Click here for video

 

Take a look at the video of how a 3 D printer builds a house from concrete, saves trees and labor

Another month, Another Ponzi Scheme

Wed Oct 27 2021

Larry Roberts has pleaded guilty in the Fractac Ponzi factoring scheme.

Larry and father Earl embezzled $800,00 promising a  10T% annual return.  They continued to sell the scheme even after they ceased factoring invoices.

Frauds occur during positive social mood which has driven stock markets to new highs.  Investors forget the if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is not maxim. Greed rules the day casting good judgement aside.

Earl Roberts Sr., 77, launched Factac in 2000. Larry Roberts, 51, had joined the business by 2012.

Around late 2016, Factac ceased factoring invoices and receivables in the volume necessary to support the returns promised to investors, according to Larry Roberts’ plea agreement.

Nevertheless, the plea says, Larry Roberts assisted his father in continuing to market Factac to new investors.

They told investors that Factac was still operating profitably and that it would pay 10 percent annual returns.

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Multiple people invested with Factac from December 2016 through February 2018. But instead of using that money to factor invoices and receivables, the father-and-son team used the money to pay back previous investors and for personal expenses.

Directions to Ranger Creek

Tuesday Oct 26 2021

SA CPA tour Ranger Creek Thursday Oct 28 4 00 PM

 

directions from campus

 

	1.	Head north toward Jaguar Pkwy	66 ft
	2.	Turn right onto Jaguar Pkwy	0.2 mi
	3.	Turn left onto University Way	1.0 mi
	4.	Turn right onto I- 410 Access Rd/SW Loop 410	0.1 mi
	5.	Take the ramp on the left onto I-410 E	15.6 mi
	6.	Keep right to continue on I-410 N	4.2 mi
	7.	Take exit 166A toward Randolph Blvd/Thousand Oaks Dr/Starlight Terrace	0.2 mi
	8.	Merge onto I-35 Frontage Rd/NE Interstate 410 Loop	0.3 mi
	9.	Take the ramp on the left to Thousand Oaks Dr/Starlight Terrace	0.6 mi
	10.	Merge onto I-35 Frontage Rd	0.6 mi
	11.	Sharp left to stay on I-35 Frontage Rd	0.4 mi
	12.	Turn right onto Whirlwind Dr Destination will be on the left	0.3 mi

4834 Whirlwind Dr, San Antonio, TX 78217, USA

Saturday Nov 13 2021 That'll Be the Day

Weekend Oct 23 2021

Can you offer this community service event to other students? Family and friends over 14 years old is welcomed to volunteer. 

 

 

Community Service Event Details:

Event: Landscaping with Habitat for Humanity 

San Antonio Volunteers: IMA San Antonio & TXCPA-San Antonio Business & Industry Committee Target 

Date: Saturday, November 13,2021 

Time: 7:45AM to 12PM 

Food: Breakfast & Lunch will be provided 

Location: 13801 Watson Rd. San Antonio

RSVP Here: https://sanantonio.imanet.org/events/eventdescription?CalendarEventKey=d71d4fe1-8725-40e6-b591-620a8b34f860&CommunityKey=13131c07-8033-4888-802c-a39fd7e72fc9&Home=%2fhome

Saturday, Nov 13th! (7:45am-3:30pm) - in person! Joint service project with SA CPA Society, Business & Industry Committee! Landscaping Yard Th sanantonio.imanet.org

 

 

Lacee Stratemann

VP of Professional Education

IMA, San Antonio Chapter

 

 

Wiley Career Ready November 11

Friday Oct 22 2021

Plan to join Wiley for their career Ready seminar November 11 2021

Data Analytic Class, Register Today

Friday Oct 22, 2021

As I mentioned in class, datacamp.com is a website that teaches data analytics in several platforms.  They have courses available in Introduction to Power B.I., and Tableau.  

Power B.I.: https://app.datacamp.com/learn/courses/introduction-to-power-bi

Tableau: https://app.datacamp.com/learn/courses/introduction-to-tableau

 

Subscriptions are currently on sale for $149/year.  I believe the sale ends tomorrow (10/22/2021) at 7:30p.m. CST.  They regularly offer discounted rates, but their undiscounted price is stated as $399/year.  

 

Discount landing page: https://www.datacamp.com/promo/october-flash-2021