Don't Know Jack (41 page)
Authors: Diane Capri
Lest readers think counterfeiting is too difficult for the average person, consider Albert Talton, dubbed
The Most Notorious Counterfeiter
when he was convicted of making more than $7 million in counterfeit bills using ink-jet printers. Before he began his business, he'd never used a computer. His bills were first noticed in 2005 and by 2007, they travelled across the country in significant quantities. He was convicted and sent to prison in 2009. Privately, law enforcement conceded that Talton's counterfeits likely exceeded the $7 million estimate.
Rural Georgia has been the focus of several large scale crime investigations by U.S. authorities in recent years involving Mexican drug cartels. Perpetrators have been charged with drug trafficking, conspiracy, money laundering, and various weapons charges. In November 2010, 45 people were arrested and more than $23.8 million in cash was confiscated along with drugs having a street value of more than $10 million, the
Augusta Chronicle
reported.
Switzerland's famously private banks are no longer places to stash illicit cash and stolen goods. Everyone from mobsters to art thieves to families who inherited sizeable estates were caught by surprise when legendary secret banking laws were bested by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service in its ongoing efforts to bring tax cheats to justice. Even more alarming to tax evaders, their confidants may now be paid a handsome reward by governments when they turn cheaters in. The IRS has recently offered tax amnesty for people hiding money in offshore accounts with stiff penalties for failing to voluntarily comply. The IRS has collected billions under these programs. For the most recent effort, see
Forbes Magazine.
Hide Your Assets and Disappear
, a book written by a former FBI agent, provided significant insight into how and why people choose to leave their lives behind and why they choose to come back, a subject that has fascinated me for years.
That said, the criminal activities herein depicted are pure fiction, as are the characters. Any events or real places mentioned are used fictitiously. As we all know, truth is stranger than fiction.
About the Author:
Diane Capri is a lawyer and multi-published author.
She’s a snowbird who divides her time between Florida and Michigan. An active member of Mystery Writers of America, Author’s Guild, International Thriller Writers, and Sisters in Crime, she loves to hear from readers and is hard at work on her next novel.
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Judge Wilhelmina Carson Cases:
Attorney Jennifer Lane Cases:
Darla's Deceit
(short story)