We Need Agent Hanratty Now!
I loved the 2002 movie Catch Me If You Can, based on the true story of scammer and bank fraud criminal Frank Abignale, Jr., portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio.
According to Bloomberg News, the rise in economic fraud is causing a strain at Carl Hanratty's former agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Hanratty, portrayed by actor Tom Hanks, is the character based on FBI agent, Joe Shaye, who single-handedly tracked down Abignale. During the movie shooting, accounts said the character agent name was changed to Carl Hanratty for unknown reasons.
According to the Bloomberg News report, with the ongoing economic crisis, there has been a rise in criminal fraud, including increased mortgage scams, which are straining the FBI's resources, an agency leader testified recently.
The FBI has more than 1,800 open investigations into mortgage fraud, more than double the number in fiscal year end 2006, Deputy FBI Director John Pistole told a U.S. Senate hearing recently in Washington, D.C. The FBI also has more than 530 open corporate fraud investigations, including 38 linked to the financial crisis, he said.
"The FBI has experienced and continues to experience an exponential rise in mortgage fraud investigations," Pistole said in testimony and reported by the Bloomberg News. "The increasing mortgage, corporate fraud and financial institution failure case inventory is straining the FBI's limited white-collar crime resources."
The Senate Judiciary Committee's hearing focused on whether there should be increased enforcement to cope with the economic decline. The committee's chair, Senator Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, wants legislation to hire more fraud investigators and prosecutors. The bill, backed by the Justice Department, would also strengthen financial crime laws.
The government's $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), and proposed economic stimulus legislation, will likely mean more criminal activity, said Neil Barofsky, special inspector general for the TARP program.
If Carl Hanratty's phone rings, you can be sure it won't be Abignale calling him. It just might be a request to dust off his old FBI badge and get back to work.