There have been a lot of articles about the fact that Seniors are often the subject of financial fraud, and it’s true. But you don’t have to be old to get scammed. Most of Bernie Madoff’s victims were rich, successful and relatively sophisticated.
Here is the story of financial writer, public speaker and financial thought leader, Mitch Anthony, who was scammed out of $1 million and whose mother lost her life savings. It’s an object lesson.
As I sit down to write this article, I know it will likely be the most difficult composition of my writing career—difficult because it dredges up a miasma of regret, embarrassment, sadness and anger like nothing else I’ve experienced in life. I was conned out of almost a million dollars.
I will survive. But my mother was also conned—out of every penny she had. Her journey would prove much more difficult. The recollection of what I’m about to detail makes me feel stupid and gullible, like a sucker who should have known better. Then there’s the exasperation and indignation of watching someone skirt justice for one simple reason: There wasn’t ample time to hold him accountable for the fortunes he destroyed and the lives he crushed.
The federal statute of limitations on financial crimes is five years. Once you discover you have been defrauded, very likely two to three years have passed. Legal proceedings will chew up a year or two. By the time prosecutors decide there is merit in proceeding, the time has almost run out, and they will cease their efforts knowing they are up against the statute. This was our exact experience. By the time I brought the fraud to the attention of the FBI, they informed me that the perpetrator was already “on their radar”—but at this point, there wasn’t enough time left to do anything, and they couldn’t afford the time and resources to waste their efforts.
The man’s name is Wendell Corey, and he touted himself as a “developer.” Continue reading