Did a crocodile make an over-zealous citizen’s arrest?
According to this email I received, it would seem that law enforcement officers were not required in the apprehension of an unfortunate car thief..
Subject: FLEEING ROBBER EATEN BY ALLIGATOR
Hindsight being what it is, an unidentified thief (allegedly) burglarising cars behind the Miccosukee Indian Reservation in Dade County, Florida might have picked a different hunting ground had he known that he’d become the hunted.
And we mean that in the most literal sense.
You see, witnesses called the cops on the burglar while he was breaking into cars, and the boys in blue arrived on the scene and gave chase.
Hoping to elude the fuzz, the suspect dove into a pond behind the resort and casino where he was greeted by a 9-foot alligator unfamiliar with the concept of Miranda rights.
Unfortunately for the suspected burglar, the alligator was of the aggressive and unpleasant variety, and thus, a law-breaking career came to a grisly and unexpected end..
He’d have been a lot better off spending the night in the clink instead of heading into the drink.
Unfortunately for the gator vigilante, Florida fish & wildlife reps saw to it that he followed his erstwhile prey into the afterlife.
Reality, of course, is often different.
The above email is a hoax but, as with many such hoaxes, it is based upon fact which does lend some believability to it.
Back in November of this year a car thief was indeed fatally wounded on an Indian Reservation in Miami, Florida.
In that instance, however, the vigilante was not an alligator but a crocodile.
Other pictures attached to the email are a little too grisly to be shown here as they depict a variety of bodily parts that were said to have been found in the croc’s stomach.
In truth, the robber was bitten around the head and not ripped apart.
Either way, it serves as a good reminder that crime doesn’t pay, don’t you think?
$100,000 identity thieves caught.
A Philadelphia couple are facing charges of committing an estimated $100,000 in fraud in order to fund their extravagant lifestyle.
The pair of American jet-setters, who have been likened to a modern day Bonnie and Clyde, financed their high-life by using the credit cards of their unsuspecting neighbours, in their upmarket apartment building, as well as other identity theft victims, according to Philadelphia police.
Jocelyn Kirsch, 22, and Edward K. Anderton, 25, have been charged with identity theft, forgery, unlawful use of a computer and a whole host of other offences.
Jetsetting
Their fraudulent scheme, believed to have netted the pair in excess of $US100,000 this year, paid for trips to Paris, London and Hawaii.
There were also other extravagances, such as Kirsch’s $US2200 hair extensions, police said.
According to Detective Terry Sweeney, ‘They were two young people that were given many gifts in life, and the very best thing they could do was victimise other people.’
Investigation
Police began investigating the pair on November the 19th after one of their neighbours reported that she thought her identity had been stolen.
The very next day the woman discovered that she had a package awaiting collection, even though she had not ordered anything.
Police lay in wait at the postal office and arrested both Anderton and Kirsch when they arrived to pick up the package, detectives said.
A subsequent search of the couple’s apartment led to the discovery of four computers, two printers, a scanner and an industrial machine used in the production of ID cards.
Keys
Police also discovered $US17,500 in cash, a large number of credit cards, fake drivers’ licences, and the keys to many of the other apartments in their block.
Additionally, police also found a book called ‘The Art of Cheating: A Nasty Little Book for Tricky Little Schemers and Their Hapless Victims’, as well as a newspaper articles that gave advice on how to spot fake IDs.
Police believe the identity thefts began over 2 years ago and may include victims from far beyond the fraudsters’ apartment.
Detective Sweeney fears that police will find more than the five victims known so far, one of whom was defrauded out of $US30,000.
Whilst on the subject of psychic fraudsters, I was alerted to this story from Cardiff, Wales.
It would seem that there is an advanced scam, designed to steal identities, currently sweeping through Cardiff.
A letter, which would appear to have originated from ‘world famous’ psychic healer Karina Natalia, has been arriving in a large number of letter boxes in the Llanrumney area of Cardiff.
Instead of being an obvious con, asking for money directly, the letter asks recipients to provide personal details instead, such as their date and place of birth, partners’ names and birth dates and even the names of their favourite pets.
Trading Standards
Local Trading Standards Officers have issued a warning, saying that such information could be sufficient to steal identities and run up thousands of pounds in debts.
Alternatively, the letter may be a ruse that could lead to those replying then receiving further correspondence, this time begging for cash.
Karina Natalia
‘Karina Natalia’, the unknown world famous psychic, does have some experience though - in 2003 the Advertising Standards Authority ruled that an almost identical mailing from her was ‘misleading and likely to exploit and alarm vulnerable people’.
Trading Standards Officers from Cardiff suggest caution in dealing with psychics, especially those who are involved in such mailing campaigns.
A spokesman said, ‘It is entirely possible that you will receive very little in return and perhaps stand to lose a great deal.’
Psychic fraud goes down under.
Terri Irwin, wife of the late Croc Hunter Steve Irwin, says she is ‘open’ to communicating with the spirit of her dead husband.
Which is kind of fortunate really because Steve’s friend, John Edward, is visiting Australia Zoo on January 5th in order to promote animal conservation issues.
John Edward can talk to animals
The star of Crossing Over apparently discovered that he could use his ‘psychic abilities’ to communicate with animals on his last visit to the zoo 5 years ago.
Now he may be urged to use his skills to talk to the Croc Hunter, who was tragically killed by a ray last year whilst diving.
His widow, Terri, said. ‘If Steve had a message for me I would be open to it and if he has a message for all of us, then January 5 would be very good for it.
Do you believe John Edward will be able to talk to Steve Irwin, or is it all a psychic fraud?
Many people aspire to own their own property.
Due to this desire, many banking and investment institutions have engaged in lending practices that could, at best, be described as unethical.
Some may even believe them to be involved in housing fraud.
Will the imminent crash in the property market highlight the misery caused by such lending practices?
There are some suspicions that the recent property booms, seen both in the UK and the US, were created, in part, by loan companies and banks who were looking to cash in on the lucrative mortgage market.
With ever-increasing property prices, that showed no signs of abating, many aspiring homeowners felt inclined to do whatever it took to get their feet onto the property ladder.
With the increase of property prices rising far quicker than inflation, and offering returns far in excessive of many other investment options, many people were quick to sign up for interest only mortgages, and other unethical schemes.
They hoped to make a quick, and substantial, profit.
The reality, however, may be somewhat different.
With house prices now beginning to decrease, and possibly crash, will these same people find that their dreams have gone up in smoke?
Interest only loans, often coupled with high arrangement fees, leave those that took advantage of them in the position where they can typically only afford to pay back the interest.
Month after month, the outstanding capital balance remains the same.
Obviously, if housing prices had continued to rise rapidly, then a healthy profit could still be made from selling at a later date and benefiting from any remaining equity left after the principle sum had been repaid.
However, when the market crashes, as it may well be doing right now, the victim of this housing fraud will find themselves paying a loan for the rest of their lives.
This loan may well end up being secured on a property which is then valued at far less than the value of the mortgage.
Such negative equity can then lead the victim into a position where they are trapped and cannot move.
The never-ending loan
With such high interest rates on these types of mortgages, they are then trapped in a situation where they are paying through the nose for a home they will never actually get to own.
Additionally, having such a large credit burden may prevent them from sourcing funding from other lending firms and may even lead to poor credit ratings.
The housing market fraud is designed in such a way that the only people who consistently make profit from it, whatever happens in the property market, are the banks and other lending institutions.
Personally, I would never obtain a 100% or interest-only mortgage as it poses too big a risk. By being careful, I have managed to keep an affordable roof over my head, despite getting divorced.
On the other hand, if you don’t take risks, you will never make big profits.
Have any of you reading this made a big profit, or a huge loss, by utilising interest only mortgages?
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Friday, December 28, 2007
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