Heart-rending story out of New York about four close-knit New York University graduates who “us[ed] their knowledge of the law and the financial industry to further the[ir] fraud.”
If they hadn’t learned finance and the law at NYU, in other words, they wouldn’t have been able to do what they did…
And what did they do, UD?
Well, let’s see.
… The four defendants are charged with stealing $422,000 over five years, by telling various banks that their ATM cards had been lost or stolen, after they allegedly emptied their accounts themselves.
… The indictment charges Eric Manganelli, 36; Lam Dang, 37; John Tluczek, 37; and Marzena Tluczek, 35; made false claims totaling more than $700,000, to more than 20 banks, that unauthorized transactions were made on their accounts.
The defendants then demanded reimbursement from the banks, which paid them more than $422,000, according to the indictment.
In each case, the defendants opened accounts and padded them with large deposits, over the course of several months. Later, the indictment charges, they drained the accounts, with withdrawals of $500 to $1,000 per day.
Once the accounts were empty, the defendants allegedly would contact the bank and say their ATM cards had been stolen or lost and that the withdrawals were unauthorized. After the banks reimbursed the money, the defendants would close the accounts…