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This is Part 2 of 2 of a mini-series on the epic fraud committed right under the noses of the public and the City of New York. Read Part 1 here.
UPDATE (July 17, 2014):
On July 15, 2014, Svetlana Mazer, Mark Mazer's wife, was convicted for obstruction of justice. The court sentenced Svetlana Mazer to three years of probation and ordered her to complete 200 hours of community service.
Larisa Medzon, mother to Svetlana, was convicted for structuring transactions to evade reporting. Medzon was sentenced to six months of home confinement, three years of probation, and ordered to complete 200 hours of community service.
Anna Makovetskaya, Mark Mazer's distant cousin, was convicted for conspiracy to defraud the United States. Makovetskaya was sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to complete 200 hours of community service.
UPDATE (April 29, 2014):
On April 28, 2014 Mark Mazer, Gerard Denault, and Dimitry Aronshtein were each sentenced to 20 years in prison and ordered to forfeit $40 million in cash and property.
Co-conspirators, Svetlana Mazer, Mark Mazer's wife; her mother Larisa Medzon; and Anna Makovetskaya, Mark Mazer's distant cousin, all pleaded guilty on June 19, 2013 and their adjournment for sentencing is slated for June 24, 2014.
Carl Bell reportedly co-operated with investigators and pleaded guilty on June 14, 2011. His sentencing records are sealed.
Victor Natanzon also reportedly co-operated with investigators and pleaded guilty on February 8, 2011. No sentencing information is currently available.
Scott Berger, co-conspirator and defendant in the case, died of an apparent heart attack on December 19, 2010.
The Schemes
According to court documents, around 2003, Gerard Denault (SAIC's Program Manager on the CityTime project) and Carl Bell (SAIC's Chief Systems Engineer in New York City) recommended that SAIC (the lead project developer on the CityTime project) hire TechnoDyne LLC, wholly owned by Reddy and Padma Allen (CEO and CFO respectively) as a subcontractor to assist in the CityTime project. In turn, the Allens agreed to pay Denault and Bell each $5 for every hour worked by a CityTime consultant hired by or through TechnoDyne, and thus these kickbacks created an incentive for the perpetrators to increase the project labor as much as possible.
Mark Mazer
Perhaps as a method to create another layer of concealment, around 2005, Mark Mazer (a third party consultant and subject matter expert on the CityTime Project) and Denault, among others, caused the Allens and TechnoDyne to hire D.A. Solutions, Inc. as a sub-subcontractor on the CityTime project. The owner of D.A. Solutions was Dimitry Aronshtein, Mark Mazer's uncle. This familial relationship was apparently not disclosed to project officials.
The following year, Mazer and Denault, among others, caused the Allens and TechnoDyne to hire yet another sub-subcontractor, Prime View, Inc., whose owner was Victor Natanzon. Both of these sub-subcontractors agreed to pay kickbacks to Mazer. Initially, Natanzon agreed to pay Mazer 80 percent of Prime View's profits on CityTime. Perhaps not satisfied with this deal, over time, Mazer demanded an even larger share of the profits.
With these two sub-subcontractors in place and with illegal proceeds flowing into Mazer's and the Allen's pockets, prosecutors allege that Mazer and the Allens agreed to pay Denault an additional $2 for every hour billed by D.A. Solutions and Prime View.
Around 2005 and 2006, Mazer and Denault, among others, used their influence to recommend an amendment to SAIC's CityTime contract, in which the City agreed to change the agreement from a "fixed price" contract, which SAIC would bear "the responsibility of absorbing cost overruns," to a "fixed price level of effort" contract, "so that the City, and not SAIC, would largely become responsible for future cost overruns."
According to court documents, after the contract amendment, the co-conspirators allegedly upped the ante and significantly increased the staffing on the project. In 2005, less than 150 consultants worked on the project. In 2007, the number of consultants increased to more than 300; most of them hired by TechnoDyne. This hiring spree occurred in spite of an internal memo by Denault that indicated that the program "was staffed adequately to meet both current and projected contract needs."
Based on interviews with former employees, investigators claim that the scheme also extended to fraudulent time sheets and ghost employees. In one interview, a former employee claims to have witnessed time sheets, which were submitted to the City for billing, that were fraudulently completed for work conducted, when in fact the consultant in question was on vacation or had been already terminated. The same former employee alleged that when he/she was notified of his/her termination, Aronshtein, owner of D.A. Solutions forced the employee to sign two weeks' of new time sheets in order to receive severance pay. Investigators believe these blank time sheets with the employee's signature would subsequently be completed and submitted, following the employees' termination, for work that had not actually occurred. Mazer and a colleague, Scott Berger, purportedly acted as supervisors and knowingly approved these fraudulent time sheets.
Gerard Denault
The Concealment
Prosecutors allege that conspirators withdrew cash through ATM transactions at multiple banks for amounts under the threshold for which a currency transaction report needs to be completed, avoiding possible anti-money laundering detection; transferred their illegal proceeds to foreign banks in India and Latvia; and deposited kickbacks to shell companies formed by the perpetrators and their family. Prosecutors accused Mazer's wife and his mother of forming some of these shell companies that received kickbacks to add layers of complexity to the fraud and to further conceal Mark Mazer's involvement.
In total, between 2003 and 2010, TechnoDyne allegedly received at least $450 million in connection with the CityTime project. Sub-subcontractors, D.A. Solutions and Prime View reportedly received $55 million between 2005 and 2010 and $20 million between 2006 and 2010 respectively. Prosecutors stated, "virtually the entirety of the well over $600 million that the City paid to SAIC on the CityTime Project was tainted, directly or indirectly, by fraud."
Denault is reported to have received $9 million in kickbacks and Bell $5 million. Dimitry Aronshtein of D.A. Solutions and Victor Natanzon of Prime View allegedly paid Mark Mazer $25 million in kickbacks.
Red Flags
So how was this fraud allowed to continue for nearly seven years, even when the original budget for the project ballooned to an absurd number? Perhaps performing some very basic due diligence and exercising tighter internal controls may have uncovered the scheme sooner.
According to court documents, D.A. Solution's revenue from the CityTime Project represented almost 100 percent of the company's income and Prime View's portion totaled 75 percent, after they were hired and up until the scheme unraveled.
News outlets reported that in 1994, Mark Mazer was investigated by the FBI while working at City's Administration of Children's Services division after millions of dollars went missing in the division he supervised. The media claimed that foster-care checks were being issued without proper supporting documents and approximately $2 million went missing. Mazer was never charged; however, he was barred from the room that wrote the checks and his salary was lowered from $43,925 to $34,537.
In 1995 and 1996, allegations against Mazer were made for sexual harassment. The victims eventually received payment from the City. Mazer was again under investigation when two city laptops were stolen in 1998, though he was not charged. The media also reported that he was arrested on petty larceny charges in 1999, though the case is sealed.
SAIC, a Fortune 500 company and a major government contractor, receives billions of dollars in revenue from its contracts, so how did they allow TechnoDyne to be hired as their major subcontractor for this project? Court documents show that upon Denault's recommendation and denial of any conflict of interest, TechnoDyne did not have to undergo any competitive bidding process to win the contract and was retained as a "sole source" contractor.
In one damning piece of evidence, according to court documents, in 2005 SAIC received a whistle blower complaint alleging that subcontractor TechnoDyne was receiving an inordinate amount of work from SAIC on the CityTime project and claimed contract mismanagement and allegations of Denault receiving kickbacks. Despite SAIC's internal investigation, TechnoDyne continued to reap a large amount of the work, about 74 percent of the overall total paid to SAIC for the CityTime project, compared to 14 percent to all the other subcontractors and vendors combined.
City officials are also partly responsible for ignoring the warning signs According to published media, during Bill Thompson's tenure in office as city comptroller from 2002 to 2009, he failed to audit the CityTime program despite the program's growing costs. Instead, on seven ocassions he authorized amendments to the program's contract allowing the program to use more and more of the taxpayers' money.
In July 2008, the OPA internally audited the program and discovered several instances where consultants had been collecting paychecks weeks after they had been terminated, costing taxpayers $145,000. According to news articles, Thompson's office was aware of the OPA audit and had been requested to investigate further. However, no further action was taken until 2010, when Thompson was succeeded as city comptroller by John Liu. As discussed in Part 1 of this series, the subsequent audit found that the program was mismanaged.
Reddy and Padma Allen
Eventually, the scheme was discovered in June of 2010, when a former consultant on the CityTime project came forward and informed the City's Department of Investigation that the consultant was being paid by D.A. Solutions rather than SAIC and TechnoDyne. DOI then learned that D.A. Solutions did not have contractual rights to receive payment for the CityTime project, which led to several interviews with other former consultants and eventually revealed the fraudulent time sheet scheme.
On November 22, 2013, Mazer, Denault, and Aronshtein were convicted for their involvment in the fraud, as have all of the defendants that have been charged in the CityTime scandal. The Allens have fled to their native India, where, with the $39 million it is believed that they embezzled, will be quite comfortable as fugitives. News articles report that at their sentencing in March 2014, both Mazer and Denault will face life in prison.
Although SAIC paid back $500 million this was a huge embarrassment for the City and officials. A project meant to create efficiency and prevent waste and fraud turned into a decade long debacle resulting in one of the largest fraud cases in New York history. One can only hope that the City has learned from its mistakes and will conduct its own due diligence to prevent future recurrences.
Ricky Tong is a Coordinating Investigative Analyst at MSA Investigations. To learn about our fraud investigation and due diligence capabilities, contact us today.
Few choices in life are as important as deciding on a caregiver for your child. All parents want the best for their children, however, the number one priority should always be the safety of the child. Too many horror stories have been told about nannies committing heinous crimes after being hired without completing a background check or being cleared when they should not have been. Of course, many of these nannies do not have a criminal past and so it is difficult to identify whether a person is capable of committing a crime. One easy way to get a better idea of a person's character is through a social media search. The internet has a wealth of self-disclosed information that, surprisingly, many people feel safe sharing. Another search to conduct is a simple education verification. Many of applicants are recent college graduates and verifying that someone actually received the degree they claim they did can provide insight into their character and propensity to lie.
It is not only nannies that need should be subjected to scrutiny, but parents should take a close look at potential daycare's as well. When conducting due diligence on a prospective daycare it is imperitive that they not only investigate the daycare, but the employees . A daycare facility may have a perfect safety record, but they could have unwittingly hired a sex offender or someone convicted of kidnapping. It may sound far-fetched, but it can happen. There is no such thing as "maybe I'm being paranoid" or "is this search really necessary" when it comes to your children.
As a parent, another important factor to take into consideration, when conducting these investigations, is record and reputation of the background screening company. Many of the nanny screening providors contract with large-scale, background screening "check the box" companies, where quantity, not quality is the primary concern. This can lead to a high volume of human error resulting in people being cleared, or given certain access, when they should not have been approved.
Many young families today are in need of a caregiver because both parents need to work. The nanny industry is expanding rapidly, meaning the number of nannies are applying for positions is increasing exponentially. Regardless if the person is a career criminal or just fibbing on his/her resume, the person left in charge of your child's safety needs to be 100% trustworthy. Using a background screening company you can trust to take the time and care needed to get the job done right is what you and your child deserves. There is never going to be a fail-safe method to identifying someone as a danger because people are unpredictable. The most a parent can do to feel comfortable with leaving their child in the care of another human being is to exhaust every avenue of investigation regarding that caregiver.
The following methods for conducting a background check on your child's caregiver should be taken into consideration when selecting a provider:
For more information and a detailed description of nanny/daycare investigations please contact MSA Investigations.
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Wall Street's independent and non-governmental regulator, recently announced that its Board of Governors approved amendments that will require their member brokerage firms to expand their background check obligations on new brokers and transfers.
Investors can currently use BrokerCheck, a free-to-access database maintained by FINRA, to perform due diligence on brokers and brokerage firms. According to FINRA, the database includes, but is not limited to, such information as, a broker's license status, jurisdictions licensed to practice, exams passed, employment history, employment terminations, regulatory actions, bankruptcy filings, criminal convictions, civil judgments, tax liens, customer disputes, disciplinary history, and arbitration awards.
FINRA states on their website that the information found on BrokerCheck is gathered from disclosures made by brokers and brokerage firms. Brokers and firms are initially required to disclose this information when first registering with the Central Registration Depository (CRD), the securities industry online registration and licensing database maintained by FINRA. Subsequently, they are required to update their professional and disciplinary history within 30 days of any new and/or relevant events.
With the passage of these new amendments, brokerage firms will no longer be able rely solely on their employees to self-disclose all pertinent information. Instead, they will be required to verify that the self-disclosures are accurate, complete and up-to-date, to ensure that brokers are not omitting relevant information, intentionally or otherwise.
As for criminal records, brokers are already required to be fingerprinted when joining a firm, regardless of whether they are a new broker or transferring from another firm. According to FINRA, the fingerprints are sent to the United States Department of Justice for processing. According to the press release, FINRA will now search publically available criminal records on all brokers who have not been fingerprinted in the past five years. FINRA will then perform unspecified periodic checks to ensure that the information available on BrokerCheck is accurate and complete, and that brokers and firms are following their requirements to disclose certain information in a timely manner.
FINRA also announced that they are studying whether there is a correlation between the number of examinations failed and broker misconduct, and whether that information should be made publically available. These amendments are pending approval by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, before they can go into effect.
These amendments come on the heels of recent criticism of BrokerCheck made by the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association (PIABA), whose members represent investors in disputes with the securities industry. In a document published on March 6, 2014, PIABA criticized BrokerCheck for not providing certain broker disclosures, even though the disclosures are public record and can be requested through state securities regulators. They claim that the states' data source for broker disclosures, the CRD, is the same database BrokerCheck utilizes to obtain its information and should therefore be included in the BrokerCheck report. PIABA argues that instead of searching multiple state regulatory databases, BrokerCheck should be a comprehensive database where investors can obtain a broker's complete history.
In their publication, PIABA compared information available between BrokerCheck and state regulators for several brokers. PIABA identified several discrepancies that did not appear on BrokerCheck, but were reported by state reports, such as, 1) reasons why a broker was terminated from a firm; 2) whether a broker was ever under internal review "for fraud or wrongful taking, or violating investment-related statutes, regulations, rules or industry standards of conduct;" 3) a personal bankruptcy filed by a broker; 4) a federal tax lien filed against a broker in excess of $100,000; and 5) exam scores and failures.
PIABA advised that another potential hurdle for obtaining broker disclosures, through state regulators, is information availability due to each state's public record laws. Furthermore, according to PIABA, some state report requests "cost consumers money; must be requested by telephone, by email, or through the state securities regulator's website; and may not be delivered for hours or days after the request," unlike the free and instantaneous BrokerCheck.
PIABA argued that FINRA should not be limiting the information available on BrokerCheck and that it should be up to the investor to decide whether or not certain information is relevant when selecting a broker. According to FINRA's website, BrokerCheck only provides information about a broker's criminal and investment-related civil history within the past ten years. Additionally, the U4 form, which brokers must complete to be registered in the appropriate jurisdiction, requires the disclosure of bankruptcy filings only within the past ten years.
The PIABA document states that the SEC has recognized the potential problems of marketing BrokerCheck as a comprehensive tool for investors, and has urged FINRA to expand the disclosures available through the database; although it appears FINRA has been reluctant to do so. PIABA asserts that FINRA's basis "for not disclosing the same amount of information as these states is based on 'personal privacy and fairness' to FINRA members" and that this rationale is "flawed given that the same information excluded from BrokerCheck reports is already publicly available from these states."
The takeaway here for investors – before entrusting a broker with your investments, perform your due diligence not only on the broker, but also on the research tools you are utilizing to ensure the information you are receiving is comprehensive. For investors concerned with non-required disclosures such as bankruptcies older than ten years and non-investment related misdemeanor convictions, MSA Investigations recommends, in conjunction with searches with BrokerCheck and state regulators, to seek out other public record repositories or contact a due diligence firm.
Ricky Tong is a Coordinating Investigative Analyst with MSA Investigations. To learn about our due diligence capabilities contact us today.
Today, virtually every United States citizen has been issued a Social Security Number (SSN), a unique nine-digit number that is used for a variety of things such as filing taxes, obtaining a driver's license, and opening bank accounts. SSNs are also used by many employers to document and identify their employees. Employers may also provide a candidate's name and SSN to an investigations firm to conduct a pre-employment screening.
However, among those outside of the background screening industry there is a big misconception about the use of SSNs when conducting background checks. There is an assumption that the sole use of a candidate's name and SSN will identify any and all jurisdictions, and by extension, criminal records for an individual. Speaking from experience, that assumption is not only inaccurate, but can have dire consequences.
To begin with, as we have mentioned in previous blog posts, there is no publicly available national criminal database. Products labeled as a "nationwide (or national) criminal background check" are misnomers, inasmuch as they do not cover every jurisdiction within the United States, and may not have the most up-to-date records available. While the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) exists, and is maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), this database is not available to the public and reportedly has issues of its own.
So What's The Problem?
As an industry best practice when conducting a criminal check, investigative firms should search both county/municipal level court databases as well as state maintained criminal repositories. It is important to note that a majority of these court databases and criminal repositories do not allow you to search by SSN. In most cases, these tools will only allow you to search by name and/or date of birth.
You would be correct in thinking that a name and date of birth are not unique identifiers the way a SSN is unique, however, there are methods you can employ to verify the identity of your subject. Depending on the state or jurisdiction, address identifiers may be included in the results, which can assist in verifying that the defendant named in the criminal record is the same individual that is being investigated.
There are other considerations to take when looking for criminal records. Since these checks are essentially a name search, what happens if an individual has previously been known by a different name? If you are only conducting a background check on the name provided by the applicant and not accounting for AKAs, you are potentially overlooking criminal records that were filed under an alias or maiden name.
Take the example of a hyphenated dual surname – In New York, a Criminal History Record Search through the New York Office of Court Administration for a Mary Johnson-Smith with a date of birth of May 25, 1977 will not identify criminal records for a Mary Johnson with the same date of birth. Flip the search terms around and the same concern arises; searching for a Mary Johnson will not identify criminal records for a Mary Johnson-Smith. In order to conduct a complete background check on this individual you would need to check both names in New York.
Do SSNs Have a Role in Criminal Checks?
It is not to say that a SSN is irrelevant when conducting a background check. A SSN can assist with identifying an individual in public record databases. This search is most commonly called a SSN Trace and allows investigators to identify jurisdictions where an individual has previously resided along with any aliases that the individual may not have disclosed.
Furthermore, there are many instances where a public reporting agency will provide limited information as to the identity of the defendant on record.
This is a particular issue when searching for criminal records at the federal level. The one and only public source for federal criminal records is through the Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) database. While other databases allow for a name and date of birth search; this database can only by searched by name. This is a great concern when an individual has a common name. Investigators will often times sift through court documents that are available online through this database, in order to search for an additional identifier. However, in many cases these identifiers are not recorded in court documents, or the court documents may not be available.
It is then up to the investigator to follow-up with court clerks and probation and parole offices to verify that defendant's identity. Depending on the jurisdiction and their protocols it may be possible to verify with a clerk or supervision office a defendant's last four digits or even full SSN, in addition to other identifiers that they may have on record.
Speak With Your Provider
If you were under the impression that a criminal record search is conducted primarily using a subject's SSN you may find it worthwhile to speak with your background screening provider regarding the use of aliases. While searching for aliases may be more costly, due to running additional name searches, the benefit of conducting a comprehensive search is immeasurable.
Ricky Tong is a Coordinating Investigative Analyst with MSA Investigations. To learn about our background screening services contact us today.
Every company wants to grow; whether its a start up or a well-established name within an industry, progress is a primary goal. However it is important to remember that growth can be more complicated than it seems, and can more often than not lead to chaos in one form or another. Take the banks for example. The wrap many institutional banks are getting these days is that they are too big to accurately monitor transactions. Many of these banks are in, or have been through, lengthy and costly money laundering court cases.
The latest of the big banks to fall victim is Citibank, which is now embroiled in a $400m fraud investigation in Mexico. Banco Nacional de Mexico, known as Banamex, Citigroup's Mexican unit, is trying to recover money from Oceanografia, an oil contractor based in Mexico City. Oceanografia is the largest contractor utilized by the state-owned oil conglomerate, PEMEX. However, due to recent events Mexican Attorney General, Jesus Morillo Karam, began to suspect that money laundering may have been occurring within Oceanografia and Banamex.
PEMEX has a long-standing relationship with Oceanografia, which has won over $2B in domestic and international bids since 1999. Yet, Oceanografia's CEO, Amado Yanez, reported just $50M in the company's accounts earlier this year and further indicated that they were going to default on loan payments to Banamex. According to media reports, Banamex apparently loaned Oceanografia the nearly $400 million based on falsified invoices to PEMEX. Once Oceanografia was unable to pay down the debt it had been accruing since 2008, authorities took notice. As a result, Citigroup began to investigate its financial ties to the company and found that "only $185 million of the collateral backing $585 million of loans could be verified", according to a statement from the company obtained by Bloomberg News. They then had to adjust their 2013 profit to reflect the missing money, from $13.91B to $13.67B.
It has been reported that Oceanographia has been suspended from bidding on government contracts for almost two years as a result this violation; contracts with Penmex amount to approximately 97% of their revenue. Oceanografia has also had their assets seized by Mexican law enforcement officials.
The International Business Times quoted Mr. Karam as saying "money laundering can start with the initial crime of fraud, but it does not stop there." As evidenced by this case and reiterated by Mr. Karam, the effects of money laundering are more far-reaching than we may think. The day Citigroup announced the over $250M hit to its 2013 profit, shares dropped $.06. While this may not seem like a lot, it could make a very large difference to an investor who is heavily leveraged. Other significant consequences of money laundering can be (and certainly were in this instance):
Though the investigation is just getting under way and all the facts have yet to come out, it should go without saying that a good way to help mitigate future headaches, such as lawsuits and loss of income, when engaging in large-scale business transactions is to do your due diligence. This would include making sure a prospective client or partner meets the following criteria:
John Maguire is an Investigative Analyst with MSA Investigations.
Last week, the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") issued its annual "Dirty Dozen" list of tax scams, reminding taxpayers to use caution during tax season to protect themselves against a variety of schemes. Identity theft and telephone scams top this year's list as it did in 2013 and 2012. The IRS warns that many of these cons peak during filing season as people prepare their returns. According to the latest report, more identity thieves are looking for ways to get their hands on personal information. Once the information is obtained, they will file a tax return as the unsuspecting victim and claim the refund for themselves.
The following Dirty Dozen tax scams were identified for 2014:
This occurs when someone uses your personal information, such as your Social Security number, to file a fraudulent tax return.
Callers pretending to be an IRS representative solicit personal information in hopes of stealing money or identities from victims.
Victims will receive an unsolicited email from what appears to be the IRS. The email will direct recipients to a dummy website posing as a legitimate IRS site in an attempt to lure potential victims and get them to provide valuable information.
Posing as tax preparers, offenders entice their victims by promising large federal tax refunds; using flyers, advertisements, and phony store fronts to lure their victims. Perpetrators will often prey on low-income individuals, the elderly, and non-English speakers.
This is similar to the "False Promises" scam; however, the tax preparers are legitimate, just not ethical. It is important to choose carefully when hiring an individual or firm to prepare your return. Taxpayers should use preparers who sign the returns they prepare and enter their IRS Preparer Tax Identification Numbers (PTINS).
While there are legitimate reasons to have financial accounts in offshore banks, there are reporting requirements that need to be fulfilled. U.S. taxpayers who have such accounts and do not comply with the reporting requirements are breaking the law and risk significant penalties and fines.
Following a natural disaster, it is common for criminals to impersonate charities in an effort to get money or private information from taxpayers. Perpetrators will use a variety of tactics. Some operating bogus charities will contact individuals by phone or email to solicit money or financial information. They will even go as far as contacting the disaster victims and claim to be working for or on behalf of the IRS to help victims file casualty loss claims and get tax refunds.
The taxpayer willfully engages in this scam. This includes such things as claiming unearned income or listing false expenses in order to maximize a refund. In some cases, taxpayers will inflate the number of dependents to get the tax credit for each.
This occurs when taxpayers make unreasonable or outlandish claims to avoid paying the taxes they owe.
Again, this is a scam taxpayers commit, in which they claim that wages paid by a company are not in fact "wages," but something else, such as reimbursements for expenses paid out of pocket or a loan. The claim is often made that the company who paid wages is at fault and refuses to correct the W-2 for fear of IRS retaliation.
This scam is very complex and is usually benefits taxpayers in the highest tax brackets. By using limited liability companies, limited liability partnerships, and other similar entity formations, in a non-traditional way, the scammer sets up a structure which attempts to create a "tax-neutral" entity. Unsuspecting victims are encouraged to buy into these arrangements, with the promise of eliminating or substantially reducing their tax liabilities.
Trusts are commonly used in tax and estate planning, and when done properly are completely legal. However, the IRS also sees a lot of abuse when questionable transactions are placed in trusts alongside legitimate ones. Another example of misuse is an attempt to use a trust illegally, to transfer wealth from one generation to the next without incurring taxes.
To avoid becoming a victim of tax fraud, file early; never provide personal information such as your social security number over the phone; don't click on links within an email that you think are suspicious; and conduct your due diligence when selecting an accountant. Make sure you use tax preparers who sign the returns they prepare. To learn more about ways to protect yourself from becoming a victim, visit the IRS website for more information.
Melissa Rodriguez is a Senior Investigative Analyst at MSA Investigations.
In 1996, businessman John Spano, a man of relatively modest wealth (reportedly several hundred thousand dollars), attempted to purchase the New York Islanders hockey team. He was able to convince the NHL and several financial institutions, one of which loaned him $80 million that he was worth upwards of $200 million. "I set it up so other people couldn't talk to other people, or they didn't have enough knowledge to put two and two together. The guy at the bank knew one thing. The guy at the NHL knew another. My attorney knew something else. If they would have all got together, they would have realized something wasn't right," Mr. Spano said at that time. He very nearly pulled it off and was almost allowed to purchase the Islanders.
Recently, a former Wall Street broker who, in 2006, pleaded guilty to stealing more than $4 million from a client and spent a little over two years in prison, almost purchased Maxim magazine for nearly $30 million through a clever series of deceptions and appeared to take a page out of the John Spano manual on how to perpetrate a fraud. Calvin Darden Jr., the accused, has been charged with stealing several million dollars from a number of lenders to assist in his purchase of Maxim. Mr. Darden was also charged with convincing a company in Taiwan, which paid him $500,000, that he could arrange an exhibition game in Asia involving the NBA's New York Knicks. He did all this by claiming to be his well-known and very prominent father.
Calvin Darden Jr., the son of Darden Media Group Chairman Calvin Darden Sr., surrendered to the U.S. Secret Service following the filing of multiple federal charges against him in U.S. District Court in lower Manhattan. In announcing the arrest of Calvin Darden Jr., U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: "As alleged, Calvin Darden, Jr., sought to mislead and deceive his victims at virtually every opportunity, and he used the full spectrum of fraudulent devices, including false documents, 'spoofed' emails, and outright impersonation. This Office has zero tolerance for those who allegedly engage in this type of conduct, especially when it is to the tune of millions of dollars."
Calvin Darden Jr., according to published media, has enjoyed the world of celebrity having managed the money of Cheryl "Salt" James of the hip hop group, Salt 'N Pepa, former NBA star Latrell Sprewell and Cornell Haynes Jr., better known as rapper, "Nelly," in his days as a Wall Street broker. In 2003, Mr. Sprewell was reportedly fleeced by Mr. Darden out of $300,000 and Nelly lost $950,000, when Mr. Darden's debts became overwhelming. Ms. James was fortunate to have her money returned. Mr. Darden's father, Calvin Darden Sr., was a self-made man who started out as a package handler for United Parcel Service (UPS) where he rose to become senior vice president of U.S. operations. Darden Sr. had become one of the most well-respected African-American businessmen in the nation, serving on the boards of directors at both Target and Coca-Cola. Calvin Darden Sr.'s sudden success, when UPS went public in 1999, elevated Darden Jr.'s profile and opened doors to such notable firms as Salomon Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and Smith Barney, who signed him with a reported bonus of $344,000. Things appear to have only gotten better for Mr. Darden as he began traveling in professional sports and entertainment circles. A $2.85 million mansion, a Lamborghini Murielago (estimated worth: $225,000), a Mercedes-Benz 600 and a Porsche Turbo all seemed to come with the territory.
In 2003, life in the fast lane came to a sudden standstill following charges that Mr. Darden stole $4.1 million from several of his Wall Street employers, coupled with the $1.2 million from Latrell Sprewell and "Nelly." He even reportedly swindled an 87-year old woman. Following his conviction, Mr. Darden spent two years in prison.
In the latter part of 2013, a deal to purchase Maxim magazine with Mr. Darden began to take shape and in September, Maxim's parent company, Alpha Media, issued a press release saying that "a definitive purchase agreement" had been reached. Mr. Darden, according to court documents, had immersed himself in an elaborate scheme "to fraudulently induce several companies to provide millions of dollars of financing for the…attempted purchase of Maxim." This scheme included bogus emails, fabricated financial statements, and false representations, all while impersonating his father, Calvin Darden Sr.
As part of his plan, Mr. Darden requested and received more than $8 million from two lenders, of which $4.9 million was obtained by Mr. Darden's use of a Russian-hosted email "spoofing" service. "Spoofing" is a tactic quite commonly used by cyber fraudsters, whereby they transmit a phony communication by falsifying data. In this instance, the email sent by Mr. Darden appeared to originate from the lender's account and purported to authorize the release of the $4.9 million.
For the remainder and the bulk of the funding for the proposed deal, Mr. Darden meticulously orchestrated a series of ruses in hopes of securing an additional $20 million. As an inducement for the funding, Mr. Darden pledged to the lender that he was working in cooperation with a cable company to establish a cable channel, based, in part, on Maxim. A bogus email, purportedly from the president of the cable company was forwarded from Mr. Darden to the lender and expressed an interest in creating a cable channel based around Maxim.
In late November 2013, Bob Guccione Jr. (son of Penthouse magazine founder Bob Guccione Sr.) insisted that the deal was still on and that he was prepared to take over as CEO of Maxim and partner with Mr. Darden. By the end of December, Mr. Darden missed a series of deadlines for providing the necessary funding of approximately $10 million, which began to spell the end of his deception.
Given the cunning and shrewd manner in which Mr. Darden orchestrated these series of ruses to obtain the necessary funding to purchase Maxim, it is difficult to speculate whether the normal "Why didn't you conduct your due diligence?" adages apply in this case. True, Calvin Darden Jr. did have a checkered past, which a basic Internet search would reveal, but, in this instance, the parties believed they were dealing with Mr. Darden's successful and very prominent father and not the son who had been convicted of prior fraud. Given the significant amounts of money on the table however, one has to question why there were not face-to-face meetings with the actual person with whom Maxim, its parent company, and the private equity investors believed was the ultimate purchaser. As John Spano was quoted as saying earlier, "If they would have all got together, they would have realized something wasn't right."
Neil Moran is Vice President of MSA Investigations.
As most college-bound students already know, applying to a top ranked school is a highly competitive and selective process. These prestigious institutions attract prospective students from all corners of the world. Administrators will seek the best of the best, as these future leaders will represent the institution's program and enhance its reputation.
The rigorous screening process typically takes into consideration: past grades, test scores, education and employment history, recommendations, interviews, essays, and aspirations. Additionally, schools are increasingly performing criminal background checks on their prospective entrants.
Approximately two-thirds of all employers perform a criminal background check on new hires, and with educational institutions as, if not more, selective than big name companies such as Google, Facebook, Apple, and Goldman Sachs, there is no reason why they shouldn't use this additional method of vetting candidates. The reasons to utilize this check are the same: to avoid the risk of tarnishing an institution's hard-earned reputation and with alarmingly frequent school shootings, to provide a level of protection to their faculty, staff and students.
Highly reputable institutions and companies attract the most ambitious and intelligent applicants; however, they are also the target of dishonest individuals, who will stop at nothing to achieve their goals. Intelligence and charm does not exempt a person from being a criminal. In fact, those very qualities can be found in many con artists. For an institution to expect that a candidate would disclose adverse information in accordance with an established "code of honor" would be unwise, especially when those with checkered pasts have nothing to lose.
Even those with an impressive resume and recommendations from reputable and influential sources cannot often be trusted. Take for example the case of the former CEO of Yahoo who resigned in 2012, when it was revealed that a computer science degree, which he claimed to have earned, was in fact, never awarded.
In another instance, a former Harvard University student, Adam Wheeler, schemed his way into the school in 2007 as a sophomore transfer, by providing fraudulent letters of recommendations and falsely claiming that he had earned a perfect SAT score, attended MIT as a freshman, and graduated from Phillips Academy, a prestigious high school in Massachusetts. According to published media, his scheme was discovered during his senior year and he subsequently pleaded guilty to "20 misdemeanor and felony counts of larceny, identity fraud, falsifying an endorsement or approval, and pretending to hold a degree." He was sentenced to 10 years of probation and ordered to pay a restitution of $45,806 to the school.
In more recent news, it was revealed that former SAC Capital fund manager Mathew Martoma, who has been convicted in what U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara called "the most lucrative insider trading scheme ever," had a track record of being dishonest dating back to his days in law school. In 1999, Martoma was expelled from Harvard Law School when it was discovered that he had falsified his academic transcripts, changing B grades to As, when he applied for several judicial clerkships. Following his expulsion, Martoma legally changed his name from his birth one of Ajai Mathew Thomas in 2001, and was accepted into Stanford Graduate School of Business in the same year. It's unknown whether Stanford was aware of Martoma's history at Harvard; however, it is assumed that had this disclosure been made, he would not have been admitted into their MBA program.
From these anecdotes, it is clear that even the best institutions can make a mistake and grant admission to an unqualified candidate. It is somewhat encouraging though that our institutions have learned from these oversights; whether it's for a MBA or PhD program, schools are increasingly conducting a more thorough due diligence. In West Virginia, lawmakers have even proposed a bill that would give institutions of higher education the power to obtain a criminal background check on both prospective and current students that apply to reside on-campus housing, as well as allowing students to conduct a background check on another student.
Ricky Tong is a Coordinating Investigative Analyst at MSA Investigations. To learn about our background screening services, please contact us today.
Edward Snowden should be far less infamous, or famous, depending on how you view the NSA leaks. That is the sentiment of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). Last week, the DOJ joined a lawsuit accusing USIS, formerly U.S. Investigations Services, Inc. of "dumping" hundreds of thousands of government sponsored background checks. USIS is the largest contracted background screening company employed by the government. They have been conducting background investigations for the government for over five years and are currently in the early stages of a new five year contract, signed this past August.
Dumping is the practice used by USIS, and other unscrupulous background screening companies, of completing a report or giving high level access or security clearance to an individual, or consumer, without conducting any of the research. Some reasons for this despicable practice could be the pressure to meet deadlines, expanding profit margins and/or sheer laziness. Allegedly USIS habitually waited until the last minute to complete reports and became serial offenders of dumping these reports to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which acts as a human resource department for the United States government. Furthermore, according to USIS, all of the investigations went through a quality control review prior to being "dumped" on OPM for adjudication. Many of these background checks were supposed to be conducted on candidates for positions and security clearances with the Department of Defense, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Homeland Security and other highly secure government organizations.
An applicant can be adjudicated in several different ways. For example, if the agency requesting the background investigation has varying degrees of security clearance the applicant might be adjudicated as "high", "medium", "low" or just not provided any access. Another type of adjudication might be a simple "yes" or "no" in regards to the employment of a certain individual. The US Government was basing its security clearances and employment of individuals in highly sensitive positions on background investigations that were, in some cases, not even started.
Approximately 40 percent of USIS' business was funded by OPM. USIS was the largest contracted company performing background checks for the government. Among the backgrounds performed by USIS was Edward Snowden, who has leaked numerous highly classified NSA files and is in possession of many more; and Aaron Alexis, the Washington Navy Yard shooter. NBC News reports that a letter was sent by Frank Montoya, National Counterintelligence Executive, to OPM stating the background check regarding Snowden "revealed several areas of incomplete coverage" and "did not present a comprehensive picture of Mr. Snowden." This implies that although Edward Snowden had no criminal background to speak of, clearly the report was lacking information and perhaps there were some red flags that were overlooked which might have have shed some light on his true intentions. Aaron Alexis, on the other hand, was arrested for shooting out the tires of a co-worker prior to his being investigated by USIS. Allegedly the background screener relied on Mr. Alexis' word that he had simply let the air out of the tires by hand. He received a secret security clearance which he used to gain access to the premises and murder 12 people.
Fraudulent background screening is not easy to detect. Audits can be performed, however they are costly and time consuming. Also, they are not guaranteed to detect wrong-doing. The government audited USIS annually and instead of uncovering the dumping they found no irregularities and awarded USIS bonuses worth millions of dollars. It is unclear whether or not USIS will lose its contract with the United States government, after these incidents, but OPM is taking steps to try to ensure a scheme of this magnitdue does not reoccur. Along with increasing audits and on-site inspections OPM is reassessing their contract and the USIS employees responsible for this audacious operation have been relieved of their duties. These are all quality initiatives in attempting to remedy this situation, but when researching background screening companies it is imperative to take their reputation and record into account.
John Maguire is an Investigative Analyst at MSA Investigations. Please contact us with any background screening questions or concerns.
© 2014 MSA Investigations. All Rights Reserved.


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When a self-described smart alec is as quick with his pencil as he is swift with his wit, what do you git? er, get? The answer is David Tovey, a cartoonist that assembles his random thoughts into pieces of art that give family and friends a chuckle. Starting tomorrow, at 10 a.m., they will also put a smile on the faces of Douglasville Patch viewers.
Over the years, the subjects of his comics have ranged from everyday life to childhood, politics, golf and aliens.
"Whatever strikes me," he said. "My favorites come from real life experiences but they may not be exactly what happened."
How do family and friends like being the subjects of his uniquely-humorous creations?
"They seem to enjoy it, even when they are the butt of the jokes," he said.
Even though he's been drawing since early childhood and he's always had a healthy sense of humor, he said he hasn't had much luck getting published. He just drew for family, friends and co-workers.
"I was working in an office environment and something would happen or someone would say something and I'd just draw a comic about it on the spot," he said. "We'd just enjoy it at work and that would be the end of it."
He said he once had a book of comics published in a little booklet that was handed out to employees for Christmas presents. Over the past four or five years though, he's begun saving them and has about 300 in a book, Dave's Book of Nonsense.
Originally from Kansas, Tovey's lived in Georgia since 1969 and in Douglas County since 1975. He and his wife Katherine have just celebrated their 30th Wedding Anniversary and David is currently a manager of a security company.
They have two children, both graduates, Kyle, 24 and Derek, 21.

subset: commoncrawl


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The Hope Academy on Monday received the detailed list of objections the Blount County School Board has in denying their application to create a Science, Technology Engineering and Math academy.
While most of the objections dealt with either finances or operational details, the Innovative Education Partnership board that created the 450-page application is busy reworking their document to resubmit to the school board.
"We had a four-and-a-half hour work session reviewing the seven pages of written objections the school board provided to us as the basis for their denial of our application," said Innovative Education Partnership board member Tab Burkhalter. "We believe there are legitimate questions in there that we plan on addressing in our appeal. There are areas that need to be clarified, because we believe we properly presented some pieces of information they raised objections to, so we need to better restate some of our positions and principles in our amended application."
Burkhalter said the partnership has until Aug. 30 to resubmit the amended application, then the school board will have 15 days to render a final decision. If denied, the application can be submitted to the Tennessee State Board of Education for approval or denial.
The nine-page letter from Rob Britt, Blount County director of schools, referenced the Aug. 2 work session the board and administration had with the Hope Academy organizers.
"Although the overarching concept and educational programming feature many good aspects, the application as submitted is overall vague and ambiguous when it comes to details. The lack of specific goals, objectives and student outcomes, coupled with concerns, questions and issues with incomplete answers as well as uncertainty with how the school would operate were evident in the meeting," he said. "On Thursday, Aug. 4, the Blount County Board of Education denied the application based on the discovery of incomplete information, inaccurate information, conflict with the old law versus the new law, issues and concerns related to the educational plan, governance and policies, as well as operations and finance."
Burkhalter said the partnership based their application on applications that had been successfully approved by other school systems. "Obviously this is the first time Blount County Schools has had to look at a charter application, and it is somewhat of a learning curve for both sides," he said.
Burkhalter said the academy board believes, based upon applications approved in Davidson, Shelby, Hamilton and Knox counties, their application met and exceeded what had been approved in other districts. "That is where we will go about more clearly defining and explaining the purpose and mission as well as the policies, procedures and day-to-day operations of the school," he said.
Out of a possible 100 points, the committee reviewing the application gave it a 35.5. The review committee was made up of Blount County central office staff who evaluated 20 legislative required elements of the charter school application. Each of the 20 elements is included in one of four categories: mission, education plan, founding group and business/operations plan.
Burkhalter said the rubicon that the review committee used is meant to be a guideline in evaluating the application. "We believe when we submit our amended application, the rubicon will reflect a much higher score for the school. We were graded on their expectations and not on the guidelines we followed from other charter school applications. When we submit our amended application, the application will be geared more toward the school board's expectation and less on what has been successfully used in other charter school applications across the state."
Education plan criticized
Regarding educational plan, out of a possible 40 points, the committee awarded 15.5. "The committee said items listed in commendations have been or currently are a part of Blount County Schools and do not provide anything different for students to have a more full and rewarding educational experience if enrolled in the charter school," Britt said
Britt said the review committee criticized the Hope Academy organizers for not adequately defining areas of deficiency in the Blount County School System. He said the committee also questioned specifics about how the academy will provide innovation in education and said there were not clear goals regarding Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.
Britt said the review committee said the way Hope Academy will assess and evaluate students mirror the county system's.
Transportation was also a sticking point with the review committee, particularly in regards to how the school would serve economically disadvantaged students on free and reduced lunch who depend on buses to get to school. The plan proposed by the Hope Academy would not include transportation, Burkhalter said.
"Other charter schools throughout the state do not offer transportation but still serve the free and reduced population. The children get to school via car pooling and parents working together," Burkhalter said.
One area where the review committee raised several objections was the academy's plan for special education and working with students with disabilities.
Britt said the review committee found the application didn't provide for a continuum of services for students with disabilities. Britt said that while Hope Academy intended in its application to refer students suspected of having a disability to Blount County Schools for a comprehensive evaluation, the plan did not address a fee structure for such evaluation or a plan to provide required obligations through qualified professionals.
Burkhalter said special education was a large area of the committee's objections. "They're coming from the view point that they want zero involvement in special education programming. Other charter schools work out a fixed contract or fee for the county to provide special education services so that it is a defined area," Burkhalter said.
Founding group critiqued
Regarding the Founding Group, the review committee gave the application 10.5 points out of 20. Criticism in the objections dealt with the committee's concerns regarding the old and new charter school laws and how they apply to the application.
Business plan graded
Regarding the Business and Operations plan, the review committee gave the application five out of a possible 30 points. Regarding operating budget, the review committee gave the application a zero out of 10 points. In regards to timetable, the review committee gave the application a zero out of 3 points. It also gave the application a zero out of 2 points regarding admissions policies as well as health and safety compliance and transportation.
"A major concern with respect to the state funding is that if a large number of current Blount County students enroll in Hope Academy, it would result in a redirection of existing revenues without being able to cut an equal amount of costs," Britt said. "It will be difficult to cut associated costs from losing students scattered throughout the system."
Hope Academy organizers have said that if the school board seeks a waiver allowing students from Alcoa and Maryville to have the same access as Blount County students, that could ease the financial burden on Blount County because funding would follow the students from the Alcoa and Maryville school systems.
"The open enrollment law passed in July of this year has created some question as to the funding for students that transfer from one LEA to a charter school in another LEA," Burkhalter said. "We'll be working with the Department of Education to provide all the appropriate documentation as to how that mechanism works and flows."
Nixon weighs in on process
Gary Nixon, executive director of the Tennessee State Board of Education, said if the Blount County School Board denies the application a second time, the academy organizers have the right to appeal to the State Board of Education.
"Then it comes to the state board, and we would hold a hearing, get information, make a recommendation to the state board," said Nixon. "The state board is the final hearing body. The majority of times, the state board upholds the local board's decision."
Nixon said one option is for the state board to remand the application back to the local school board and direct them to approve the charter. "There haven't been too many times, less than five, that the board has remanded the application back to the local board with a directive to approve," he said.
Burkhalter said the STEM philosophy has been talked about by Maryville and Alcoa to the point their proposal for grant money to build a STEM school lost out to Knoxville. "There is clearly a desire among educators in the county to have a sole STEM-oriented school here in the county," he said. "We are excited about being able to provide that learning opportunity."


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The sunset had faded, and Mount Rainier had dimmed out of sight by 5 p.m. Sunday, and people were still walking up from the town to the Eatonville Early Learning Centers parking lot.
They were coming to honor Margaret Anderson, a Mount Rainier National Park ranger killed on a sunny New Years Day morning. She had set up a blockade to stop a motorist who had run a tire chain check point. He shot her, and she died of her wounds, leaving a husband and two daughters, ages 1 and 3.
Sunday evening, police, neighbors, people who had never met her, came to pay their respects at a vigil hosted by the Anderson girls day care.
People were drawing close to hear the speakers when Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor estimated their number at 150 to 200, with more arriving.
Faith Baptist Churchs Pastor Joe Koehler asked for silence and began the vigil with a prayer.
Lift up and remember Margaret, and care for her family, he asked God.
Margaret and Eric Anderson were both park rangers, and he knew them in his capacity as chaplain for Pierce County Fire District 23. They had, he said, spoken of God and risk and duty. Margaret, the daughter of a Lutheran minister, had told him that she had been a person of strong faith since childhood.
She was a cop because of her faith, he said. She was a ranger because of her faith. Because Jesus loved her, she loved others. She was willing to give her life for others... Because she loved The Lord and He protected her, she loved and protected you.
Now, he said, the Anderson family is grateful for the love and comfort people have shown them.
A score of Eatonville residents signed a remembrance posted in the town hall.
Friends have credited Andersons calm professionalism with keeping the shooter from getting farther into the park.
Saturday evening, Deana Simons brought dinner chicken alfredo, garlic bread and green beans - to the Anderson home, as Eatonville friends have been doing since the shooting. Relatives, clergy and law enforcement colleagues have been keeping watch with, and over Eric Anderson and their two young daughters.
There have been 25 people taking meals at the house, Simons said. Last night, there were only 12.
Among them were Margarets parents, the Rev. Paul and Dorothy Kritsch, of New Jersey. They attended the vigil with their son and daughter-in-law, Peter and Karen Kritsch, and their surviving daughter, Sarah Beylon, all of Wisconsin.
On behalf of the family, Beylon thanked the mourners, and spoke of a sister who had a graceful way of teaching by example and kindness, even with something as mundane as jogging.
Eric Anderson came by briefly, and without introduction, before returning to his daughters.
I would like to express our thanks for the outpouring of love beyond compare, he wrote in a statement he asked Koehler to read. We take comfort in knowing how loved Margaret was.
That love showed itself in the preparations for the vigil.
Neighbors Dara Zurfluh, Carri Korvanda, Kay Tucker and Kelli Loudin asked to use the school site, and arranged the program. They brought their daughters to help with the candles, the baskets for remembrances, the flowers. Emily Randolph, who brought fellow students from Eatonville High School, sang Amazing Grace, and brought some members of the crowd to tears.
Kathleen Merryman: 253-597-8677


text: With his next project, Troy Ave intends to sum up all five boroughs of hip-hop's hometown in a single album. It's an audacious move coming from an unsigned upstart, but before you judge the emcee for his hubris, take a look at the heavyweight guests he's assembled for the lead single. Yeah, those are … Read More


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Rated 4.6 out of 5Â by 95 reviewers.
Men's adidas Originals Lifestyle Shoes
RH Instinct Shoes
Tribe Blue/Black (G99952)
Size Chart
+ Save To Wishlist
Rated 5 out of 5Â by JoshuuaDx Roundhouse Instinct These have to be one of the best shoes I have ever bought, the look is amazing, it catches peoples eyes from a mile away, they are very comfortable to wear. That thing that you can flip is just like having three pairs of shoes in one. I definitely recommend them to everyone. September 14, 2013
Rated 3 out of 5Â by kismet1113 try on a few... I really liked the way these shoes looked so I ordered my normal size. One shoe fit fine and the other one was cut A LOT more narrow than the other. I don't have wide feet at all, so saying one shoe was much tighter was really an issue on Adidas' end...so I returned the shoes...and then found them for half the price at the local Adidas outlet store. I had to try on 3 pair until I found a set of shoes that both seemed to be the same width. Each time one of the shoes (not the same shoe each time) was much more narrow than the other. Not a normally issue for Adidas so maybe it's just these. January 23, 2014
Rated 5 out of 5Â by Marvyn Sweet! I picked these up after I saw them sitting on the counter at my local Adidas store one day before their release. I asked about them and the manager told me they were having a big promotion for the release. I didn't make it to the release but I did try these on a week later in the store and I think they were on my feet for a mere fraction of a second when I decided I wanted them. They go great with many different outfits and are very well made. I will have to wait to actually wear them a lot to say if the quality is great-so I have marked it as good for now. August 19, 2013
Rated 5 out of 5Â by Captain_fresh2 Amazing! This is my first time buying from Adidas, and when I saw the new Roundhouse instinct shoes, I just had to have them! When i put them on, they fit perfectly and looked really cool! And with the option of wearing them 3 different ways, they look good with pretty much any outfit! If you want a pair of colorful, comfortable, and stylish High-tops, these shoes are for you! August 9, 2013
Rated 5 out of 5Â by stennes23 You get what you pay for The saying "you get what you pay for" totally applies to these shoes, they look amazing, are incredibly comfortable, and have the $200 look for a little over $100. I love these shoes and would totally recommend these to any person in need of a fresh pair of kicks August 31, 2013
Rated 4 out of 5Â by Nrobzzzx Huge Fan These shoes are really awesome looking. They're extremely comfortable, and nobody has them. I love the way they look and feel and would recommend them to any Adidas fan out there. The only negative is that they get dirty easy and pebbles get stuck in the bottom of the shoe. All around though, they're pretty awesome. October 3, 2013
Rated 5 out of 5Â by LeVar Best purchase ever I ordered the shoes online Friday morning around 2 a.m and received them Wednesday morning,just in time for the show that night.I love Adidas August 12, 2013
Rated 5 out of 5Â by Matt715 Best shoe ever!! This shoe is just the best adidas shoe i've ever owned! I have about 5 pairs of different shoes but this are my favorite. I also love the reversible strap that changes the design of the shoe more or less. I would seriously recommend this shoe to anyone looking for a stylish, comfortable, and overall awesome shoe! September 7, 2013
Rated 5 out of 5Â by chickmunga my fave shoes they are completely and totally awesome! August 1, 2013
Rated 5 out of 5Â by sneaker awsome Best shoes I bought from adidas August 18, 2013


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Staff very friendly, very helpful, helped me a lot! Highly recommended. Highlighting the spacious bathroom.
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- Anonymous
- Brazil
- Male, 25-30
- (13 reviews)
Wonderful stay! Marina and her mom made our stay even more fun because of their kindness and helpful suggestions.
- Novice Nomad
- Anonymous
- Female, 25-30
- (3 reviews)
Location is by the beach, if it is what you are looking for travelling to Joao Pessao.if you want to have more cultural dip, you ahve to sacrifice from beach. The actual city center is hassle to go, since the busses that pass are quite rare (though you can have some 10 min walk to catch bus from more frequent street).
- Novice Nomad
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- Turkey
- Female, 25-30
- (5 reviews)
I came to this place for a long stay already for the third time. Because it's really the best hostel in South America. It's already like my second home. I love these people! Thank you Marina and Maria Jose!!!
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- Russia
- Male, 31-40
- (12 reviews)
Had a very nice stay here. Nice and very friendly staff. The owner actually invited me to go out with her and her friends during carnaval, as I was a solo traveller. Really appreciated that! Best breakfast experience in South America so far! Her mum makes the best cakes. ;) It was a very good location right next to the beach, and close to shops. A bit of a walk to the closest supermarket, but thats OK. Would recommend it!
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- Norway
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- (5 reviews)


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