MARYLAND NEWS

Two former inspectors who monitored Maryland's flagship EmPOWER energy efficiency program have come forward publicly for the first time with allegations that millions in ratepayer funds were misspent. Source Baltimore Sun

Investigators linked him to more than 10,000 fraudulent federal tax returns, attempting to collect over $91 million and successfully securing more than $11.6 million…The scheme relied on stolen identities — more than 259,000 of them — along with thousands of IRS filing PINs used to bypass federal safeguards. Source: aol.com

In an amended complaint, IG Isabel Mercedes Cumming asks how her office can root out fraud and waste if it cannot access city records. Source: baltimorebrew.com  

According to the guilty plea, Park admits that from October 2020 through January 2021, he participated in a conspiracy to launder proceeds he and his associates generated through selling marijuana in Maryland. As part of the conspiracy, female co-conspirators transported marijuana from California to Maryland, usually via commercial air travel.  Parks traveled separately from the co-conspirators to Maryland, but he sold the marijuana with local co-conspirators after arrival. Source: US Attorney, District of Maryland

Attorney General Anthony G. Brown today issued an alert about the prevalence of fraudulent investment schemes proliferating across Meta platforms, including on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Scammers are increasingly using deceptive advertisements and “deepfake” technology to lure investors into high-stakes scams to defraud them of their savings. These scams include “pump and dump” scams, confidence scams, and fraudulent cryptocurrency schemes that take advantage of people to extract as much money as possible.

 The Maryland Attorney provides tips to protect investors from scams and urges them to scrutinize social media advertisements before investing. Most reputable broker-dealers and investment advisors do not post specific investment advice on social media platforms. The AG encourages anyone who may have been affected by these types of investment scams to report it to his Securities Division at securities@oag.maryland.gov and anyone harmed by a consumer scam to report it to his Consumer Protection Division at consumer@oag.maryland.gov.

Source: oag.maryland.gov

A Baltimore City Councilman proposed a charter amendment that would designate the city's inspector general as a co-custodian of agency records…The Association of Inspectors General (AIG) penned a letter on Monday supporting the effort to designate the inspector general as a custodian of records. Source: wbaltv.com

In part, the April 6 letter from the President of the Association of Inspectors General states: “For offices of inspectors general to administer independent and fair oversight in a manner worthy of the public’s trust, they must have direct access to government records that reveal how government agencies have transacted business or exercised authority on behalf of the taxpayers they represent. AIG supports the proposed effort to designate the Baltimore City OIG as a custodian of records and restore the office’s access to Baltimore City government records.” Source: Association of Inspectors General.

AIG has the experience and expertise in providing guidance to government stakeholders on these complex issues and, as a nonpartisan and nonprofit organization, stands ready upon request to provide counsel or recommendations related to the proposed charter amendment and to support Baltimore City Council members in this effort.” Source: inspectorsgeneral.org

A 47-year-old Upper Marlboro resident, admitted in U.S. District Court in Maryland that she steered an employee assistance program contract to a prime contractor and a subcontractor owned by a relative, according to court documents and federal prosecutors’ statements. Source: Baltimore Sun

More than $75 million in charges may be eligible for refunds.

According to the complaint, Lindsay touted deceptively low prices and then charged the vast majority of consumers hundreds or thousands of dollars more once they arrived at the dealership. Lindsay often claimed consumers could not get the advertised prices because they did not qualify for a litany of rebates included in the advertised price…The complaint also alleged Lindsay deceptively told consumers they had to finance through the dealership to get the advertised price…Under the order, the Maryland Attorney General’s Office will be sending notices to consumers who may be eligible for redress.Source: ftc.gov

Source: dcnewsnow.com via yahoo.com

Faced with a subpoena seeking documents about one of his programs, Baltimore’s mayor argues that the inspector general’s subpoena powers only apply to entities outside of city government. Source: Baltimore Brew