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Jed Boal Reporting Investors beware! Scammers are geared up to take you for a ride in the year ahead.
James Garland invested money with a New York brokerage that one day urged him to pump up his investments.
James Garland, Investment Scam Victim: "Everything was going well...then two months later, everything crashed."
He lost 137-thousand dollars! The brokers made money, and Garland got shafted on paper.
James Garland: "Bring in more and more money by showing me good gains. I was sending in more and more money. With the leverage factor, they had me ripped off in two months." Common themes? Scammers target investments that grab headlines. Real estate and oil and gas investment schemes are popular right now.
Flyers and promotions like these boast deals that turn out to be scams: One guarantees 21-percent interest annually on your investment. Another lures you in with a client appreciation meal. And another one targets senior Americans eager to make money in retirement.
Calls from real estate scammers are common.
Wayne Klein: "If you'll give us some money, we'll use it to buy a home. We'll fix it up and resell it at a profit, and we'll split the profits with you. Or we'll use your credit score to buy a home...fix it up and sell it."
Always know who you're dealing with. Only one-fourth of investment fraud is reported. Aware investors can help shut down the scammers.
Top Ten Investment Scams:
1) Real Estate Investments 2) Note Brokering
3) "Free Meal" Seminars for Seniors
4) Prime Banks
5) "Hot Tip" Stock Recommendation via e-mail
6) Church Frauds/Affinity Frauds
7) Foreign Currency Trading
8) Oil and Gas Investments
9) Deceptive Internet Investing
10) Promissory Notes or Guarantees
Wayne Klein: "We don't think we're ever going to eliminate investment fraud...we hope to reduce the amount of money that is lost and find out about it earlier so we can act more quickly."
James Garland took action. He recorded conversations with the broker and securities investigators recovered all of his money.
