Three arrested in N.M. shooting hoax

On Saturday -- in what turned out to be a staged prank -- the suspects used blanks to shoot one of their own in the chest, then threw the "victim" into the back of a pickup truck in the parking lot of the Farmer's Country Market in Roswell. 

No real explanation yet.

| Sara Shepherd

Extortion scheme involved Wal-Mart, Mexican assassins, feds allege

The Star-Tribune's James Walsh has an EPIC story about

an alleged extortion plot involving Mexican hit men hired by Wal-Mart, the Samoan mafia, an exotic dancer from Guam, her love child and a fearful farm family from Granite Falls, Minn.

Long story short, I laughed, I cried, it's better than "Cats." Especially how the Mexican assassins are from a gang named Los Burritos.

File photo via AP; these burritos are not trying to kill you

Con man took over exchange student's life, police allege

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer has a jaw-dropper of a story about an alleged con man who's accused of taking over a Korean exchange student's life -- and making her believe the most unlikely stories as he robbed her blind, police say. It's a little too much to summarize, but you'll be shocked at what he's accused of doing.

"(She) had been evicted, but Clark successfully kept this fact from (her)," Banyai-Riepl told the court. "Clark hired movers to move all their belongings to the 'CIA Safe House' in Everett (actually his parents' home.)"

KCPD warns of DirecTV scam

KCPD is warning the public about con artists who dress up like DirecTV reps and try to sell services door-to-door. You shouldn't have a hard time spotting them:

The man was wearing a yellow tie with a dress shirt and shorts and had a DirecTV badge. The girl had purple hair and a lazy eye.

Driveway scam turns up in Leavenworth County

From Dawn Bormann: Leavenworth County Attorney Todd Thompson is warning residents to beware of a scam that appears to target members of the elderly.

Thompson said he’s received several calls from residents who have been approached by an asphalt company requesting to pave their driveway. Employees of the company explain that they have excess material from another job and offer elderly residents a discount. However, once the work is complete, the employees demand far more money than the originally requested oral agreement.

1 year for HUD exec who goofed off, but still got paid for it

Herman Ransom, a former HUD executive based in KCK, has been sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison. The crime? Ransom was caught spending a lot of time at an Overland Park tennis club and various casinos, which he listed as hours spent working. The feds say he got paid almost $47,000 for time spent goofing off.

Supreme Court reins in 'honest services' prosecutions

The "honest services" law is a popular tool for prosecutors investigating corporate fraud, but a new U.S. Supreme Court ruling says the law is being used too broadly. "Honest services," basically, requires elected officials and business executives to act in their constituents' best interest. The feds have used it to prosecute people like Jeff Skilling in the Enron scandal. A lot of opponents, though, have argued the law is too broad and too vague.

The Supremes' ruling doesn't get Skilling off the hook, but it does give him a stronger position as he appeals his 24-year sentence. The Times says it could even help former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich in his trial.

Sorry, you are not a winner

Overland Park police are warning about a new phone scam making the rounds. They've gotten reports of calls where residents learn they've "won" a new car, a pile of money or some other fabulous prize. They just have to wire some money to another city to claim their winnings. Luckily, nobody has fallen for it yet, police say. The police say the caller had a heavy accent, possibly Middle Eastern.

Stay classy, Bernie Madoff

From New York magazine:

“F**k my victims,” he said, loud enough for other inmates to hear. “I carried them for twenty years, and now I’m doing 150 years.”

KC chief debunks 'gang initiation' myths

At Chief Corwin's blog, there's a post about gang initiation myths. Apparently, there have been emails circulating that warn people about these kinds of attacks. In one story, somebody eggs a person's windshield, and the driver gets beaten or raped when they stop to look at the damage. There's also a version where the person stops to investigate a baby or a doll left in a carseat in the middle of the road. The stories are hoaxes, KCPD says.

Guilty plea in KU gun scare

That was quick. Remember the ruckus at KU a few weeks ago? There was a big police response after a report of a gunman on campus, though it turned out to be wrong. Samuel Moore, the suspect, has just pleaded guilty, the Douglas County D.A.'s office reports. He's looking at six months in jail at least, though he could get zapped for probation violations. From the release:

Mo. man scammed Oklahoma casino

A Webb City man was sentenced to five years of probation for scamming a casino in Oklahoma. He reportedly dyed several 25-cent chips so they looked like $500 ones. He's been ordered to pay $70,000 restitution.

How to make money off a dead friend

In Florida, two people are accused of getting a life-insurance policy for an imaginary person and, when a family friend died, burying that person under the imaginary guy's name. Profit? About $500,000, police allege. The only mistake, authorities allege, was bragging about it to the dead guy's son.

Also, a profoundly excellent mugshot awaits you.

How did police know she had that tattoo?

Christian woman with "Bossy" tattooed on left breast tries to pass bad check so she can buy Christmas gifts, police allege.

Police: Girl lied about abduction attempt

From Glenn Rice: Police determined that a 15-year-old girl made up a story about a man trying to abduct her twice in 24 hours. The Van Horn High School student told authorities that a man tried to entice her into his pickup truck as she was on her way to and from school.

Investigators determined her story did not add up after speaking with the girl, her mother and neighbors, said Officer Tom Gentry, a police spokesman. The reason for the fabrication was not revealed.

Student accused of lying his way into Harvard University

A 23-year-old man is accused of lying his way into Harvard University and getting $45,000 in grants, scholarships and other money, the Boston Globe reports. The Delaware native, who is a senior, faces 20 criminal charges. Officials only tumbled to the alleged fraud after he applied for the Fulbright and Rhodes scholarships using plagiarized material.

Report: Staged car wrecks on the rise

The National Crime Insurance Bureau says it has seen a 40 percent jump since 2007 in the number of stage automobile accidents, wrecks that were committed simply to rip off the insurance companies. (Oklahoma City has seen a couple of such rings operating there.) Some cases only involve people who signed up for the fraud, but there are some that target innocent motorists. Here are some tips for protecting yourself, courtesy of the bureau:

• Avoid tailgating to ensure there’s plenty of distance between you and the vehicle in front of you in case they suddenly hit the brakes.
• Even if damage is minimal, call the police to an accident scene and obtain a police report with the officer’s name. This makes it harder for the criminal to intentionally damage the car later and try to collect a larger claim against your insurance policy.
• Use your cell phone camera or carry a disposable camera in your car to document any damage and take photos to verify the number of passengers in other vehicles.

Teen b-ball star was really 22, cops say

In Odessa, Texas, a 22-year-old has been arrested after he pretended to be a teenager and joined the local high school's basketball team, police say. (He was taken into custody for giving false ID to an officer.) The locals were tipped off by people in Florida, where the suspect had led his high-school team to the state semifinals.

Olathe warns about fund-raising scam

Olathe police say that a group of teens is going door to door, claiming to be selling books so they can raise money for the University of Kansas orchestra. The school says its orchestra isn't doing anything of the sort.

Twitter bomb threats count as bomb threats, British man learns

The man insisted that his post -- which said he would blow up the airport if his plane was delayed by snow -- was an "innocuous hyperbole."

The judge, citing "the times in which we live," disagreed and fined the man more than $1,500.

| Sara Shepherd

Ex-conman helps stop ATM scheme

Wired's Threat Level blog has a good story about a reformed conman who ratted out a young con artist who asked him for help in an ATM scheme. Instead, the older man gathered evidence and turned the guy over to authorities.

The ATM scheme is a variation that you've probably seen in the news over the past few years. One ATM manufacturer's admin codes were published on the Internet, so thieves were resetting machines to "think" that $10 bills were actually $1. Thus, any withdrawals would pay out at a 10-to-1 ratio. The manufacturer has updated its firmware, but a few ATM owners haven't reset their codes, so this stuff keeps happening.

Hat Tip: Many thanks, Tim P!

Twins try to pull courtroom switcheroo

In Largo, Fla., a man tried to "fill in" for his twin brother in court, but the man's lawyer suspected something was up. The judge was alerted, and the man made the mistake of lying under oath. He's been sentenced to nearly six months in jail. He said he was trying to help his brother, who was flying in and wouldn't make the hearing. What charge had the brother been facing? Scheming to defraud.

Stripper accused of worker's comp scam

If you're healthy enough to dance naked and hang upside down on a stripper's pole, then you don't need assistance.

Soldier faked paralysis to avoid Iraq

In East St. Louis, a 27-year-old has been sentenced to six and a half years after he faked paralysis in his legs so he wouldn't be deployed to Iraq. Prosecutors say he also bilked the government out of nearly $150,000 in benefits. His judge, by the way, served in both World War II and Korea.

Guilty pleas in KCK public-housing scam

A former employee of the KCK Housing Authority has pleaded guilty to taking bribes for her role in a HUD-related scheme, the U.S. Attorney for Kansas reports. Charlesetta Jackson would approve housing vouchers for people in Chicago, who would use them to avoid a waiting list there. Another defendant, Danielle Collins, would pass along the documents to Jackson.