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☆ A former Facebook and Nike DEI manager got 5 years in prison for stealing $5 million to fund her luxury lifestyle
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Thibault Spirlet | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

A former Facebook and Nike diversity manager was sentenced to five years in prison for wire fraud. Barbara Furlow-Smiles admitted to stealing over $5 million from the companies. Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementA former diversity program manager at Facebook and Nike was sentenced to five years and three months in prison after pleading guilty to stealing more than $5 million to fund her luxury lifestyle.

Persons: Barbara Furlow, Smiles, —, Ryan K, Buchanan Organizations: Facebook, Nike, Attorneys, Service, US, Office, Northern, Northern District of, Business Locations: Northern District, Northern District of Georgia

☆ 4 flight attendants smuggled millions in drug money out of the US using the crewmember lane at JFK, prosecutors say
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Using this status, they could access a special security lane at John F. Kennedy International Airport without undergoing typical passenger screening procedures. Advertisement"Flight attendants are ideal for smuggling bulk cash" for this reason, a Homeland Security Investigations special agent wrote in the indictments. Related storiesThe pair believed the money was the proceeds of narcotics trafficking and needed to be transported, according to the indictment. AdvertisementHe said the investigation "exposed critical vulnerabilities in the airline security industry" and has "illuminated methods that narcotics traffickers are utilizing."

Persons: —, — Charlie Hernandez, Sarah Valerio Pujols, Emmanuel Torres, Jarol Fabio, John F, Damian Williams, Hernandez, Pujols, Torres, Fabio, HSI, Ivan J, Arvelo Organizations: Service, Business, US, Office, of, Transportation Security Administration, Kennedy, Homeland Security Investigations, Pujols, Customs, Border, JFK, Delta Airlines, NBC News, Delta Locations: New York, Dominican Republic, Southern, of New York

☆ McKinsey advised drug companies on how to 'turbocharge' opioid sales. Now it's under criminal investigation.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Meghan Morris | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Department of Justice is investigating McKinsey for advising opioid producers on boosting sales. The firm previously paid nearly $1 billion to resolve lawsuits related to its opioid work. The investigation is also looking at potential obstruction of justice by McKinsey and its employees. News of the investigation underscores how McKinsey's opioid work — which the firm said it stopped in 2019 — continues to plague the consultancy. In a 2018 email, for example, a since-fired McKinsey executive wrote to another senior executive about the firm's legal risk.

Persons: —, Endo, Martin Elling Organizations: Justice, McKinsey, Service, McKinsey & Company, US Department of Justice, Street, Purdue Pharma, DOJ, of, Purdue Locations: Virginia, Western, of Virginia, of Massachusetts, Seattle

☆ Romance scammers are now building trust with AI-generated deepfakes. Here's how to spot them.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-20 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

It might be because he's a romance scammer called a "Yahoo Boy" who wants to steal your life savings. Once gaining the victims' trust, the scammers use a pretense to solicit money, like the need to pay an emergency medical expense. Last year alone, the FBI's Internet Crime Report estimated that Americans lost more than $650 million to romance scams. Kate Kleinert, a 69-year-old widow, previously told BI that she lost $39,000 to an online romance scam. Over the last two years, the Yahoo Boys started experimenting with deepfake video clips and video calls, according to Wired.

Persons: —, Kate Kleinert, Kleinart, David Maimon, Trina Higgins, Higgins, haven't Organizations: Service, Yahoo, Yahoo Boys, Department of Justice, Business, Federal Trade Commission, Social Security, Wired, Georgia State University, CNN, Nigerian, Prosecutors, Justice Department Locations: Nigeria, Hong Kong, Salt Lake City, Utah

☆ British billionaire Joe Lewis fined $5 million by U.S. judge for insider trading
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

British billionaire and former owner of the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club Joe Lewis arrives at federal court for his sentencing in an insider trading case on April 4, 2024, in New York City. U.S. District Judge Jessica Clarke in Manhattan sentenced Lewis, who pleaded guilty in January to one count of conspiracy and two counts of securities fraud. Lewis in January entered a plea deal with prosecutors agreeing to a $50 million fine of his Bahamas company, Broad Bay. Under the agreement, Lewis' fine will be included in the total. Lewis has since remained in the country, posting $300 million bail secured by his yacht and a private aircraft.

Persons: Tottenham Hotspur Football Club Joe Lewis, Lewis, Joe Lewis, Jessica Clarke, Mr, Mark Herr, Prosecutors, Boxer Capital, Patrick O'Connor, Bryan Waugh Organizations: Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, US, Office, Southern, of New York, Tavistock Group, Aviva, London's Tottenham Hotspur, Boxer, Forbes, Prosecutors, Mirati Therapeutics, Boxer Capital, Tango Therapeutics Locations: New York City, U.S, Manhattan, London's, Bahamas, Broad Bay, London, New York

☆ Taylor Swift fan sues Delta Air Lines after being sexually assaulted by mechanic on flight
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-31 | by ( Nathan Rennolds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A Taylor Swift fan is suing Delta Air Lines after she was sexually assaulted on a flight. AdvertisementA woman is suing Delta Air Lines after she was sexually assaulted on a flight last year. AdvertisementIndeed, The US Attorney's Office for the Western District of Washington highlighted two other incidents in March in its jurisdiction. Roberson faces up to a year in prison when sentenced on June 5, 2024, said the US Attorney's Office on March 8. Sexual assaults on aircraft are also increasing nationally, with the FBI last year noting a "disturbing increase" in incidents.

Persons: Taylor, —, Taylor Swift, Mark Lindquist, Duane Brick, Brick, " Lindquist, Brian Patrick Durning, Tessa Gorman, Jack Roberson, Seattle . Roberson Organizations: Delta Air Lines, Service, Mark Lindquist Law, Delta, Newsweek, US, Office, Western, of Washington, Airlines, Getty, of, Washington, FBI Locations: Delta, Phoenix, Seattle, King County , Washington, FilippoBacci, Western, of Washington, Emirates, Atlanta

☆ New review database takes aim at some of the most protected bosses in America: state and federal judges
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-30 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Attorney Aliza Shatzman created a database for law clerks to review their bosses: state and federal judges. This month, LAP launched a new database for law clerks to leave reviews of their experiences working for their powerful bosses: state and federal judges. Related storiesThe judge Shatzman clerked for has not made any public statement regarding her clerkship or complaint or his subsequent retirement. Human resources for the courts told her nothing could be done because "HR doesn't regulate judges," Shatzman testified. AdvertisementA whisper network legitimizedSince beginning to collect reviews in 2022, LAP has gathered over 800 surveys from former law clerks about their experiences working for state and federal judges nationwide.

Persons: Aliza Shatzman, —, she's, Shatzman, there's, Douglas Nazarian, she'd, Title VII, We're, who've Organizations: Service, Business, Washington Post, Washington University, Louis School of Law, US, Office, Title, Civil, District of Columbia Commission, Judicial, BI Locations: Maryland, St

☆ Judge scolds Trump lawyer after poorly-supported — and unsuccessful — bid to delay hush-money trial
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-25 | by ( Laura Italiano | Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

An April 15 date has now been set for Trump's first criminal trial, his Manhattan hush-money case. At a pretrial hearing Monday, Trump watched as his lawyer asked for a long delay. "It's odd that we're even here," the judge told the lawyer, calling his delay bid unsupported. AdvertisementDonald Trump's lawyer asked a Manhattan judge on Monday to postpone his hush-money trial — but instead of a delay, the lawyer got a verbal drubbing. "The People went so far above and beyond what they were required to do that it's odd we're even here," Merchan told Blanche before calling a brief break in arguments.

Persons: Trump, —, Donald Trump's, Juan Merchan, scowl, Todd Blanche, nefariously, Blanche, Merchan, Trump's, Michael Cohen, Susan Necheles, Emil Bove, Matthew Colangelo Organizations: Service, New, GOP, Manhattan District, Prosecutors, US Locations: Manhattan, Blanche, New York

☆ Former 'James Bond' actor Pierce Brosnan 'deeply' sorry after being fined for entering a restricted area of Yellowstone
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Eve Crosbie | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewFormer "James Bond" actor Pierce Brosnan has been fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to stepping off a trail in a thermal area during a visit to Yellowstone National Park last year. As Business Insider previously reported, federal prosecutors in Wyoming brought criminal charges against Brosnan, 70, after he went into the Mammoth Terraces hot springs area of the historic park in November. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Yellowstone and all our National Parks are to be cared for and preserved for all to enjoy," Brosnan wrote on Instagram. In 2023, around 4.5 million people visited Yellowstone National Park, according to the National Park Service.

Persons: —, James Bond, Pierce Brosnan, Brosnan Organizations: Service, Business, Office, District of, Yellowstone, Geological Fund, US, National Park Service, Geological Survey Locations: Yellowstone, Wyoming, District of Wyoming

☆ Judge approves Trump hush-money delay, and trial may now run from mid-April until after Memorial Day
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Trump's New York hush-money trial is now back on track for mid-April. The delay will give Merchan, prosecutors, and defense lawyers time to contend with late evidence. AdvertisementThe Manhattan judge who will preside over Donald Trump's first criminal trial agreed on Friday to push back the original March 25 trial start date by about three weeks. Related storiesBoth sides — the defense and Manhattan prosecutors — are blaming each other for the delay, though prosecutors also blame the US Attorney's Office for what they describe as unneccessary footdragging. The trial, which is expected to last six weeks, could now run from mid-April until just after Memorial Day, given the judge's previous plan to give jurors the fourth week of April off.

Persons: Trump's, Juan Merchan, —, Donald Trump's, Michael Cohen, Merchan, Mary, it's Organizations: Service, US, Office, ., Defense Locations: York, Manhattan, New York City

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried considered going on Tucker Carlson's show and railing 'against the woke agenda' after FTX's collapse
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The most striking item on the list was going on then-Fox News host Tucker Carlson's show to "come out as a republican." "Talk about how the cartel of lawyers is destroying value and throwing entrepreneurs under the bus in order to cover up the incompetence of lawyers," Bankman-Fried memorialized. Numerous former executives and associates testified that Bankman-Fried commingled funds of FTX customers with Alameda Research, a cryptocurrency trading firm he also controlled. Bankman-Fried wrote that he could highlight that aspect of his political spending on Carlson's show. In another list, Bankman-Fried came up with a list of "Allies."

Persons: —, FTX, Sam Bankman, Michael Lewis, Lewis, Tucker Carlson's, Fried, Bernie Madoff's, Lewis Kaplan, Carlson, they'd, ANGELA WEISS, Martin Shkreli, Cory Booker of, Matt Levine, Levine, Odd Organizations: Service, ABC, Business, Fox News, US, Office, Southern, of, of New York, Alameda Research, Twitter, Getty, Congressional, Allies, Bloomberg Locations: of New, Manhattan, Cory Booker of New Jersey

☆ Trump's NY hush money trial may be delayed a month or more by a last-minute evidence feud: court docs
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Trump's felony hush money trial had been scheduled to begin March 25 in Manhattan. Talk of delay was triggered by federal prosecutors producing 73,000 pages of long-awaited evidence. AdvertisementDonald Trump's felony hush money trial, long scheduled to begin March 25, may be delayed by a month or longer due to federal officials' last-minute production of 73,000 pages of evidence concerning their 2018 prosecution of Michael Cohen. The defense has only dragged its feet in seeking the same evidence, prosecutors said. The assistant prosecutor blamed the late, ongoing evidence dump — and the resulting need for a delay — on federal prosecutors and the Trump defense.

Persons: —, Donald, Michael Cohen, Juan Merchan, Attorney Alvin Bragg, Todd Blanche, Blanche, Trump, Matthew Colangelo, Colangelo, Cohen —, Cohen, Donald Trump, Eduardo Munoz, Joe Raedle, Stormy Daniels, Daniels, Melania Trump, Barron Trump, Merchan Organizations: Prosecutors, Service, Manhattan, New, Defense, Trump, Attorney, US, Trump fixer, REUTERS, US Attorney's Office Locations: Manhattan, tranches, Lake Tahoe

☆ Ghislaine Maxwell's lawyers to argue for Jeffrey Epstein associate to be freed from prison in long-awaited appeal hearing
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Ghislaine Maxwell's lawyers are arguing for her release in a federal appeals court. The appeal focuses on a non-prosecution agreement between Jeffrey Epstein and federal prosecutors. A jury in Manhattan federal court found Maxwell guilty on sex-trafficking charges in December 2021, four days after her 60th birthday that Christmas. Alison Nathan, the judge who oversaw Maxwell's trial, sentenced her to 20 years in prison and issued a $750,000 fine. AdvertisementManhattan federal prosecutors have argued they were free from any restrictions set by the deal between Florida's federal prosecutors and Epstein.

Persons: Ghislaine, Jeffrey Epstein, Maxwell, —, Ghislaine Maxwell —, Epstein, Alison Nathan, Nathan, Maxwell weaponized, Epstein —, isn't, Jeffrey Epstein's, Harvey, Rudy Giuliani, John M, Leventhal, Diana Fabi Samson, Maurene Comey, missteps, Scott David, Ghislaine Maxwell, Laura Menninger, Jane, Jane Rosenberg, Joe Biden, Cuban, Virginia Giuffre, JP Morgan Chase, Carolyn Andriano Organizations: Service, disbarment, Justice Department, US Department of Justice, Reuters, US, Appeals, ricochet, Deutsche Bank, US Virgin Islands, Prosecutors Locations: Manhattan, Tallahassee , Florida, New York, Florida, United States, Washington, US Virgin

☆ A California man charged with smuggling greenhouse gases hints at the revival of a decades-long black market
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-09 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | Jenny Mcgrath | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

But there's also a blooming black market in greenhouse gases. HFCs are commonly used in refrigerators and air conditioners, but they're also potent greenhouse gases. There's been a thriving black market for climate-altering refrigerant chemicals since the 1990s, at times as lucrative as selling cocaine. KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty ImagesThe black market "comes with the territory" of regulation, Doniger said. At the height of the CFC black market, many cars still used those refrigerants for their air conditioners.

Persons: there's, hydrofluorocarbons, they're, Adrees Latif, Michael Hart, Tara McGrath, There's, Hart, Carlo Allegri, David Doniger, HFCs, Avipsa, Victor Molina, KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI, Mahapatra, Doniger Organizations: Service, Department of, Business, Facebook, Department of Justice, Reuters, Natural Resources Defense Council, NASA, Environmental Investigation Agency, Getty, EPA, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, DOJ, US Attorney's, Southern, of, New York Times, CFC Locations: San Diego, Mexico, Port of Miami, Montreal, Elk Grove Village , Illinois, AFP, United States, of California, HFCs, Europe

☆ Department of Justice opens probe of Globe Life, American Income Life
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Susan Antilla | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The U.S. Department of Justice has subpoenaed Globe Life Inc. and its subsidiary American Income Life seeking documents related to one of its top life insurance agencies — the Pittsburgh-based Arias Organization. Globe Life executives made no mention of the DOJ probe during a quarterly earnings call on February 8. In October, insurance regulators in Pennsylvania fined American Income Life $130,000 for engaging in deceptive consumer practices. "We do not believe the litigation will be material to Globe Life's overall results or American Income Life's agency operations," he said. Darden told the analysts that "as soon as American Income became aware of" the allegations, AIL hired an outside investigator to look into the matter.

Persons: Arias, Renee Zinsky, Michael Russin, Joel Scarborough, Globe's, Trina Orlando, Cathy Seifert, Seifert, Scarborough, Simon Arias, Natalie Price, AIL, Warren Buffett's Berkshire, James Darden, Darden, Zinsky, Janet Hendrick, Phillips Murrah, Kathryn D, Terry, Liz Rita, Susan Antilla Organizations: U.S . Department of Justice, Inc, Organization, News, Business, BI, CFRA Research, Securities and Exchange Commission, Globe, DOJ, Scarborough, US, Office, Western, Western District of Pennsylvania, Arias Agencies, The, Justice, Warren, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, Commission, Department of Justice, AIL, Income, Zinsky, Law Locations: Pittsburgh, Scarborough, Western District, Pennsylvania, Dallas, Globe, Denver, AIL, susan.antilla1@gmail.com

☆ California man stole a Yosemite National Park ranger's vehicle and sparked a high-speed chase before plummeting 200 feet off a cliff, prosecutors say
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-18 | by ( Lauren Edmonds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewA federal grand jury indicted a California man accused of stealing a Yosemite National Park ranger's vehicle and leading a "high-speed chase" before driving off a cliff. AdvertisementThis isn't the first time tourists have been accused of misbehaving in US national parks. In May 2023, a bison calf had to be euthanized after a man lifted it out of a river in Yellowstone National Park, prompting its herd to reject it. An unidentified man disturbed a bison calf in Lamar Valley near the confluence of the Lamar River and Soda Butte Creek in Yellowstone National Park. "Park rangers tried repeatedly to reunite the calf with the herd, but their efforts were unsuccessful."

Persons: —, Phillip A, Talbert, Claustro, David Calvert, Hellen Jack Organizations: Service, Yosemite National, Business, Getty, National Parks Service, Visitors, Grand Teton National Parks Locations: California, Yosemite, Yellowstone, Lamar Valley, Lamar, Grand

☆ Ex-Apple engineer sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to stealing trade secrets about self-driving car project
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Ana Altchek | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A former Apple engineer was sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to stealing trade secrets. Apple accused him of planning to sell trade secrets from when he worked on a car project from 2015 to 2018. AdvertisementFormer Apple employee Xiaolang Zhang has been sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to all charges of stealing trade secrets in August 2022. Apple's "Project Titan" autonomous car effort is years in the making and has faced numerous delays and pivots. An Apple car was initially rumored to come out in 2021, with speculation surrounding secret labs in Berlin and California.

Persons: Apple, —, Xiaolang Zhang, Zhang, Tim Cook didn't, wouldn't Organizations: Apple, Service, Guangzhou Xiaopeng Motors Technology, US, Office, New York Times, Northern, Northern District of Locations: Guangzhou, Berlin and California, Northern District, Northern District of California

☆ An American Airlines flight attendant was charged over claims he photographed minors in airplane bathrooms
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Pete Syme | Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

AdvertisementA 36-year-old American Airlines flight attendant was arrested Thursday on two charges related to claims he'd filmed a minor using an airplane bathroom, the US Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts said. A press release from the Department of Justice released Thursday says the claims involve an American Airlines flight to Boston from Charlotte, North Carolina, in September. A family says their daughter discovered a cellphone taped inside a toilet on an American Airlines flight in September. American Airlines said in a statement that Thompson had not worked for the airline since the September incident. Paul Llewellyn, an attorney representing the girl's family in their civil lawsuit against American Airlines, said the family is happy that police arrested Thompson.

Persons: Estes Carter Thompson III, Thompson, —, he'd, Estes Carter Thompson, Lewis, Llewellyn, he's, Jodi Cohen, Paul Llewellyn Organizations: DOJ, Service, American Airlines, US, Office, District, Department of Justice, SEAT, BI Locations: Massachusetts, Boston, Charlotte , North Carolina

☆ What happened to Denise Huskins' kidnapper Matthew Muller? The case was first considered a 'Gone Girl'-style hoax
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Eammon Jacobs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

She was kidnapped by Matthew Muller in Vallejo, California, in the middle of the night. When Huskins reappeared after her ordeal, Vallejo police accused her of staging the abduction as a hoax. Muller was ultimately ID'd as Huskins' kidnapper, and the Vallejo police eventually apologized publicly to Huskins for the labeling her ordeal a hoax. AdvertisementMuller was indicted in a Sacramento federal court on kidnapping charges in October 2015, nearly seven months after Huskins' abduction. AdvertisementBut state charges for the rape of Huskins were filed in Solano County Superior Court against Muller in 2018.

Persons: Denise Huskins, Matthew Muller, Muller, —, Felicity Morris, Bernadette Higgins, Huskins, Aaron Quinn, Quinn, fiancée, Andrea Roberts, Vallejo, Gillian Flynn's, David Fincher, Amy Dunne, Rosamund Pike, Nick Dunne, Ben Affleck, Quinn weren't, Misty Carausu, " Muller, Phillip A, Talbert, Huskins hadn't, he'd, Muller wasn't, He's Organizations: Service, San Francisco, Authorities, Netflix, Dublin, FBI, San Francisco Chronicle, US, Court, Napa State Hospital, CBS, FCI Tucson, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Vallejo Locations: Vallejo , California, partner's California, South Lake Tahoe, Huntington Beach, Vallejo, Dublin , California, Netflix's, Dublin, Huntington, South Lake, South, Tahoe, Sacramento, Alameda, Solano County, Napa, Arizona

☆ A self-described real estate visionary was charged with running an Airbnb scam that made millions by tricking guests into booking non-existent properties
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-04 | by ( Hannah Getahun | Kelsey Vlamis | Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . The complaint said Goel and associates would purposely double-book guests and then invent "fake last-minute excuses for cancelling overbooked guests or tricking them into switching to inferior replacements." Sometimes, they would encourage guests to stay at alternative properties they offered as a false upgrade and keep the money when guests complained, the indictment said. The indictment said that in some instances, Goel and others working with him listed properties for rent that didn't even exist.

Persons: Shray Goel, Goel, —, Shray Goel —, Alex, Brittany, Jess, Tyler, Goel's, Allie Conti, Airbnb, Vrbo Organizations: US, Prosecutors, Service, Business, FBI Locations: Florida, California, Florida , Illinois, Colorado, Texas, Vrbo

☆ An Airbnb host's son secretly filmed a guest in the shower, then tried to blackmail her into sending him a sex video: prosecutors
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Grace Eliza Goodwin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A man living in his mother's Airbnb home secretly filmed a guest naked and then tried to blackmail her, prosecutors allege. Prosecutors say Strutz admitted to hiding a cell phone camera in a basket on the bathroom counter. AdvertisementThe son of an Airbnb host was sentenced to prison in connection to allegations that he secretly filmed a guest in the shower and tried to blackmail her into sending him an explicit video. The graphic messages continued for several months until Strutz sent her a nude image of herself from when she showered in the Airbnb bathroom, prosecutors allege. Strutz admitted he filmed the guest using a cell phone he had hidden in a basket on the bathroom counter, prosecutors allege in the complaint.

Persons: Kevin Strutz, Strutz, —, cyberstalking, Airbnb Organizations: Prosecutors, Service, Eastern, Eastern District of California, FBI, CBS News, Attorney's, Eastern District of Locations: Ceres , California, Eastern District, Strutz's, Airbnb, Eastern District of California

☆ An influencer pilot who crashed his plane for his YouTube channel has been sentenced to 6 months in prison, prosecutors say
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

YouTuber Trevor Jacob has been sentenced to six months in prison, prosecutors said. Jacob intentionally crashed a small plane in California on 2021 for a YouTube video. Two days later, Jacob informed the National Transportation Safety Board of the plane crash, and said he would help them locate the crashed plane, prosecutors said. When pleading guilty in June, Jacob said he'd agreed to advertise a sponsor's product — a wallet — in his YouTube video, prosecutors said. AdvertisementJacob did not address why he had pretended the plane lost power in his 2021 video and his aircraft accident incident report.

Persons: YouTuber Trevor Jacob, Jacob, he'd, —, Trevor Jacob, he's, John F, Walter, Jacob didn't, He'd, YouTubers Organizations: Service, Los Padres National Forest, US, Central, Central District of, National Transportation Safety, Federal Aviation Administration, YouTube, Padres, FAA, Business Locations: California, Central District, Central District of California, Lompoc, Mammoth

☆ A sales practice at American Express is under scrutiny. Here's what we know about the investigation.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Dakin Campbell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

It's not clear how much scrutiny the company is under for management's role in developing and training employees to sell the product. Subpoenas are issued to compel parties such as company executives and employees, or former employees, to appear for interviews or turn over documents. In July, the OCC assessed a $15 million civil penalty against American Express National Bank. The IRS is also involvedBrooklyn attorneys are coordinating their criminal investigation alongside the IRS's criminal-investigation unit, the people BI spoke with said. Sinking morale among some sales employeesThe investigations are taking a toll on Amex's results-driven culture, current and former sales employees told BI, because compliance staff have gotten more involved in the sales process.

Persons: Amex, hadn't, salespeople, It's, Adam Isserlis, Isserlis, John Marzulli, Brian Morris, Hiral Mehta, Morris, Boies, Boies Schiller Flexner, Seth DuCharme, Charles Blazer, he's, Mehta, Hiral, Brian Organizations: American Express, Business, Justice, New York State Department of Financial Services, BI, Brooklyn, Eastern, of, OCC, American Express National Bank, Consumer Financial, Justice Department, Department of Financial Services, Department of Justice, IRS, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, FDIC's, Government, Costco, Securities, Eastern District, Department of Homeland Security, Boies Schiller, FIFA, Taco Bell Locations: Brooklyn , New York, of New York, Eastern, Brooklyn

☆ Trump's pardoning of a Kushner-linked drug smuggler undercut a larger DOJ investigation
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Donald Trump pardoned Jonathan Braun, a convicted drug smuggler, on his last day in office. Meanwhile, the DOJ hoped to use Braun in a separate probe into the predatory lending business. AdvertisementDonald Trump's pardoning of a convicted marijuana smuggler with ties to the Kushner family threw a wrench in the Justice Department's larger probe into the predatory lending industry, The New York Times reported. He spent nearly the next decade leading a predatory lending operation as a "principal" of Richmond Capital group, prosecutors said in court documents seen by Business Insider. AdvertisementIn a telephone interview with the Times, Braun denied any wrongdoing as a lender.

Persons: Donald Trump, Jonathan Braun, Braun, —, Donald Trump's pardoning, Kushner, Trump, Jared Kushner, Ivanka, Jared Kushner's, Nicole, Isaac Wolf, Braun's, Charles, Alan Dershowitz, Dershowitz Organizations: DOJ, Service, New York Times, Trump's, Times, Richmond Capital, Business Insider, Prosecutors, Bloomberg, NY, AG, Justice Department, Trump, White, Trump Administration, Kushner Yeshiva High School, US Locations: Staten Island, New York, Manhattan, Livingston , New Jersey, Pennsylvania

☆ A former venture capitalist known as Silicon Valley's 'party animal' has been convicted in a $19 million fraud case
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Polly Thompson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Michael Rothenberg became known for his rapid rise to success with his VC firm, Rothenberg Ventures. But this week he became yet another Silicon Valley star to be convicted of fraud. AdvertisementA once high-flying Silicon Valley venture capitalist, whose partying lifestyle inspired an HBO show, has been convicted of committing fraud amounting to $18.8 million. Rothenberg first rose to prominence in 2013 after raising $5 million for his venture capital management fund, Rothenberg Ventures, aged just 27. But in 2016, Rothenberg Ventures collapsed after admitting to investors it was being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Persons: Michael Rothenberg, Rothenberg, —, Chace Crawford's, Vox Organizations: Rothenberg Ventures, Service, HBO, US, Office, Northern, Northern District of California, Bloomberg, Rothenbergs Ventures, Golden State Warriors, San Francisco Giants, Golden Globes, TechCrunch, Rothenberg's, T, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, Wired, River Studios, Coldplay, Valley Bank Locations: Silicon, California, Northern District, Napa Valley, Hollywood, San Francisco

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