Chapter 9 - Conversion Investigative Methods
Conversion (how the perpetrators spend their money) Searches
1. Conversion searches are performed for two reasons:
a. Determine the extent of embezzlement
b. Gather evidence for interrogations
2. Interviews → try to have the suspect admit their only income is earned income, make it
difficult to explain lifestyle
3. How to investigate
a. www.howtoinvestigate.com
b. www.factfind.com
c. www.crime lynx.com
A. Sources of information
a. Government
i. Federal
1. Department of Defense - military records
2. Department of Justice - federal agency (criminal and civil laws)
a. The drug enforcement administration (DEA)
b. FBI
i. National Crime Information Center (NCIC)
ii. Interstate Identification Index (III) - nationwide
3. Federal Bureau of Prisons
a. www.bop.gov
4. IRS
a. Enforces all internal revenue laws except firearms, tobacco,
and explosives (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms)
5. Secret Service
a. Part of the Department of Homeland security
b. Safehands the payment and financial systems of US
6. U.S. Postal Service
a. Postal inspectors → most helpful investigators
7. CIA
a. Accountable to president
b. Investigates security matters outside the US whereas the
FBI works within
8. Social Security Administration
a. Information about individuals’ SSNs
b. Publishes list of dead SSNs
9. Other Federal Sources of Information
ii.
State
1. State attorney general
a. The attorney general for each state enforces all state, civil,
and criminal laws in cooperating with local law
enforcement agencies
2. State Prisons
3. Secretary of state
a. Maintains records relating to businesses and Uniform
Commercial Code filings (UCC)
b. Mortgages, equipment, personal property, collateral on
purchased and leased assets, the nature of the lending
company…
4. DMV
5. Department of Vital Statistics - birth records
6. Department of Business regulation - licensing info for
professionals / credentials/ complaints
iii. County/Local
1. County Clerk
a. Voter registration records and marriage licenses
2. County Land Office and tax assessor’s office
a. Real estate records for land located in the county
b. Owned assets, indebtedness, mortgage holders, trustees or
straw buyers
c. Tax records
3. County Sheriff
4. Other Officers
5. Local Courts
a. Records on past law violators, including pretrial inno like
personal history, employment history, personal and physical
information, prior charges, divorces and property
settlement agreements, personal injury lawsuits, financial
claims and litigation, fraud claims and co-conspirators,
bankruptcies, wills, and probates
b. Many perpetrators often justify their extravagant lifestyles
by claiming to have inherited money - claims can be
validated or dismissed form information contained in wills
and probate
6. Permit Departments
a. Fire permits, health permits, elevator permits, and building
permits
b. Private Sources
i.
Utility records
1. gas , electric, water, garbage, sewer → show the names of who was
billed, whether or not a persona lives or owns property in the area
ii.
Previous acquaintances
1. Testimony and documents
iii. Trash
1. Hard copies may be destroyed but remain digitally on other
devices
iv. Credit reporting companies
1. Private credit records for individuals and organizations
a. Consumer information, such as addresses, ages, family
members, and incomes
b. Account information, such as payment schedules, items
purchases, and buying habits
c. Marketing info, such as customer breakdowns by age, sex,
and income levels
d. Information on current and former employers
2. Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) of 1971
a. Consumer-reporting agency must on request furnish info to
an individual that is also turned to a 3rd party
i. Experian
ii. Equifax
iii.
Transunion
v. Banks
1. Records obtained through subpoena, search warrants, civil
summons, or civil discovery
2. Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act – > using false pretenses is illegal but
banks and financial institution can share customer info if they
disclose it to customers
a. Option to opt out of information sharing
c. Online Sources
i. Online databases
ii.
Techniques for effective internet searches
1. Search by phrase
a. Words inn quotation marks
2. Minus search terms
a. Place a minus sign before unique terms found
3. Domain restrictions
4. Cashed results
a. Cached versions are extremely helpful when sites are
temporarily inaccessible or no longer available
5. Google news
6. Google images
7. Google earth
a. Satellite pictures
d. Net Worth Method → determining extent of stolen funds
i. Assets - liabilities = net worth
ii.
Net worth - prior year’s net worth = net worth increase
iii. Net worth increase + living expenses = net income
iv. Income - funds from known sources = funds from unknown sources
v. Verifying or eliminating other sources of funds→ estimate of amount of
stolen funds
**When people have income, they either purchase additional assets, pay off liabilities, or
improve their lifestyles, thus increasing their living expenses
**Known income subtracted from unknown income gives a reasonable estimate of unknown
funds
**Verifying or eliminated other sources of funds (such as inheritances, gambling, winnings, and
gifts, gives a good estimate of the amount of stolen funds