Profiles

State of capture

Thulisile “Thuli” Madonsela has probably done more than any single person in South Africa to bust the lid off widespread fraud and corruption during the term of former President Jacob Zuma. She speaks about her experiences during that time and what more needs to be done.

New mission, same focus: Interview with Preet Bharara, former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York

Preet Bharara speaks about lessons learned, the outlook for new insider trading rules under the Biden administration, the challenges of overseeing COVID-relief funds, the difficulties of investigating Ponzi schemes and much more.

Madoff's legacy: What have we learned from the debacle?

Bernie Madoff is gone, but the effects of his crimes live on. Fraud examiners endeavor to learn from all frauds, including the world’s largest-ever Ponzi scheme. What lessons have we learned? How has the regulatory environment improved? How have Madoff’s schemes affected the anti-fraud profession?

Arpinder Singh, CFE

Arpinder Singh, CFE, got his start investigating fraud when he discovered the field of forensic accountancy just as India’s economy took off following sweeping reforms in the early 1990s. Forensics proved to be an excellent career choice as corporate India increasingly focused on governance issues, including fraud detection and prevention.

Alan E. Small, CFE

Alan Small, CFE, first became acquainted with fraud investigations in 1973 as a member of the Baltimore (Maryland) Police Department. His first assignment was with the criminal investigation division where he reviewed and followed the assignments of experienced detectives engaged in the investigation of high-profile cases, which included fraud.

Time to shake things up

“Ikigai,” the Japanese notion of being truly fulfilled and how a person’s work relates to their purpose, spurred former paralegal Tracy Swaim to seek more. Conversations with a fraud investigator excited her about entering the field. She earned her CFE and now works in a job that checks all the boxes for her: mission, passion, vocation and profession.

A pillar of anti-fraud education says farewell

From its early days as The White Paper to the 72-page bimonthly publication it is now, Fraud Magazine’s continued credibility and necessity to the anti-fraud profession is in part thanks to the leadership of its editor-in-chief, Dick Carozza. After 25 years at the helm, Carozza is stepping back and retiring. Here we take a look at the history of Fraud Magazine and the large role Carozza played in its success.

Six candidates selected for ACFE Board of Regents’ ballot

Six candidates have been selected to compete for two positions on the 2021-2022 Board of Regents. The board sets standards to promote professionalism and to ensure the reputation of the CFE credential.

Priti Amin, CFE

When Priti Amin, CFE, was young she knew she wanted to do something that helped others because honesty, trust and personal integrity were important to her. Those values compelled Amin in her journey to fight fraud. Within Vodafone Group, a global technology communications organization, Amin is the Vodafone Business fraud manager. She’s responsible for managing fraud risks for the entity, its products, services and customers.

Tasheika Hinson, CFE

When Tasheika Hinson, CFE, was 8 years old, she made a pact with her childhood friend that they’d grow up to become attorneys. Hinson would go on to become an assistant U.S. attorney at the Department of Justice and now is the head of investigations at The Vanguard Group Inc. where she leads internal investigations and partners with internal teams in its 19 offices around the world.

Murder, money laundering and the demise of Pablo Escobar

Retired U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents Steve Murphy and Javier Peña — the inspirations behind the hit show “Narcos” on Netflix — tell the tale of their time in Colombia, investigating and capturing notorious narcoterrorist and Colombian drug lord, Pablo Escobar. Not everything you see on TV is true, but their story comes pretty close.

Sudhir Gidwani, CFE

Sudhir Gidwani, CFE, says in 1984 he first found tremendous joy piecing together the jigsaw puzzle of unearthing fraud during his investigation of the collapse of a major local bank in Hong Kong. “As my experience in fraud and corruption investigations developed, I became more passionate about what I was doing,” he says.