White Collar Crimes

Wilmington Man Pleads Guilty to Stealing Millions from Comedian Half-Brother Dane Cook

Published on: October 13, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

Darryl McCauley, of Wilmington, pled Guilty to stealing millions of dollars from his celebrity comedian half-brother, Dane Cook.

McCauley had been indicted in Middlesex Superior Court on 27 counts of Larceny Over $250, three counts of Forgery, Embezzlement, Uttering, and Conspiracy. McCauley allegedly stole millions from Dane Cook when he worked as his business manager from the early 1990’s to December of 2008. The indictment alleged that he wrote company checks to himself and transferred funds to his personal bank account.

As a result of his plea deal, McCauley was sentenced to five to six years in state prison.

Former VP at Beverly Hospital Charged in $500,000 Bribery Scheme

Published on: July 22, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

Paul Galzerano, 58, of Groveland, Massachusetts, was arraigned today in Essex County Superior Court in Salem on 3 counts of Bribery and 4 counts of Larceny Over $250 for allegedly defrauding Beverly Hospital of almost $500,000.

The Essex Count District Attorney’s Office alleges that between 2003 and 2006, Galzerano was responsible for overseeing a multimillion dollar renovation at Beverly Hospital and during that time, he repeatedly orchestrated kickbacks from certain contractors. Galzerano and contractor Brian Lemay, 53 of Andover, are accused of inflating the price of proposals; Lemay would accept the work for excessive funds, and then kickback money to Galzerano in the form of payments to Galzerano’s personal credit cards and his home mortgage. Galzerano is additionally alleged to be responsible for the theft of numerous antiques and paintings from Beverly Hospital.

The contractors charged in connection with this Bribery scheme include Brian Lemay of Andover and Alfred Cunsolo of Methuen, both charged with Larceny; as well as John Kane of Hanover, also to be charged with Bribery.

Former State Senator Wilkerson Plead Guilty to Attempted Extortion in Boston’s Federal Court

Published on: June 3, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

Diane Wilkerson, the former State Senator from Roxbury, Massachusetts, appeared in Boston’s Federal Court today and pled Guilty to 8 counts of Attempted Extortion.

Wilkerson was charged with Attempted Extortion for allegedly taking thousands of dollars in bribes. She was initially charged under a 32 count indictment, which also included Conspiracy to Extort Cash, Mail Fraud and Wire Fraud. 24 of those indictments were dismissed by Federal prosecutors in exchange for her guilty plea to the 8 counts of Attempted Extortion.

The substance of the criminal indictments on the extortion charges included taking bribes totaling $23,500 to secure a liquor license for a nightclub, as well as promising to influence legislation relative to commercial development in her district of Roxbury. Federal prosecutors also alleged that Wilkerson accepted $23,500 from a Roxbury businessman, Ronald Wilburn. Wilburn, however, was cooperating with the FBI and assisted in procuring surveillance video of Wilkerson stuffing cash into her bra.

Harvard Student Charged with Larceny & Identity Theft

Published on: May 17, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

Adam B. Wheeler, 23, a Harvard University senior, is scheduled to be arraigned tomorrow in Middlesex Superior Court for various Theft Crimes involving allegedly forging academic documents, transcripts, and for collecting over $45,000 in financial aid and scholarships under false pretenses.

According to the Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office, Wheeler was admitted by Harvard as a result of falsely claiming that he had attended Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Phillips Academy in Andover, neither of which he attended. Harvard investigators discovered that he had once attended Bowdoin College in Maine, and improperly used referenced from that school when applying to Harvard, even though some of the referenced had never met him.

Harvard administrators became suspicious of Wheeler when he applied for the prestigious Rhodes and Fulbright Scholarships, and then discovered that he had allegedly plagiarized another student’s work. Further investigation discovered that Wheeler had also fabricated his Harvard transcript by giving himself straight A’s.

Bogus Bridal Show Scams Thousands

Published on: March 2, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

In an elaborate cyber crime, a website advertising a fake bridal show to be held in Boston at the Hynes Convention Center this coming weekend scammed thousands of brides and vendors of several thousand dollars. The website, The Boston 411, targeted people and vendors through popular bridal event websites and common social media sites such as Facebook.

The internet bridal scam was not discovered until recently when vendors started calling the Convention Center in Boston asking when they could start setting up their booths. It wasn’t until that time that the police were contacted and Hynes Convention Center officials confirming that no bridal event had even been scheduled.

The Associated Press reports that approximately 6,000 people and vendors signed up for the non-existent show. Potential attendees prepaid a registration fee of up to $15, and vendors losing several thousand dollars, some up to $4,000, for reserving floor space and producing advertising materials for the event. The internet scammers reportedly secured payments for their fraudulent crime-scheme by demanding online payments through PayPal or similar online money transfer services.