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When you have unanswered questions, We Find Answers®.
We are grateful to have the opportunity to provide you valuable information via our free bimonthly e-newsletter and our unparalleled investigative services.
We take special care to ensure the information we provide you in "The Leeeyzawn" is the latest and most current information available. In this edition, we have addressed fraud and what you should do if you suspect fraud in your business.
We want to write about topics that you can use in your business and are interested in. Please e-mail us your topics of interest to leeeyzawn@arkansas-investigations.com. We encourage you to share our e-newsletter with others in your sphere of influence. Sincerely, Your Team at Arkansas Investigations |
 | Fraud's Devastating Effects |
 In the 2014 report to the nations, the average organization reported a 5% loss of revenue each year to fraud. This amount may not seem catastrophic initially, but the effects of such a loss can prove devastating to a small business, (an organization with 100 employees or less). Due to occupational fraud, the smallest businesses suffer disproportionately large losses. Furthermore, the specific fraud risks faced by small businesses differ from those of larger organizations.
Reports show that from 2012 to 2014, the frequency of fraud in small businesses decreased, however, the median loss suffered by the businesses continued to grow. The 2014 report to nations shows that the median loss was $145,000; however, 22% of cases show a loss in excess of $1 million. A loss this substantial can destroy a business, and cause havoc for those associated with the business. One such scenario occurred, when a local business owner discovered that his long-time office manager was embezzling from him.
After the business owner recognized that the office manager had purloined $140,000, Arkansas Investigations received a call. Our mission: Find out if she had any assets the company could recover and any other information that may be of value to our client. We were quickly able to locate a local bank account with a moderate balance of $7,000. Upon further investigation, we found multiple other bank accounts at a previously unknown bank. Local police investigators were notified of the hidden bank accounts, but declined to take action to seize the accounts and protect the assets. We worked with the attorney to get a court order restricting the banks from distributing any part of the accounts, and were successful! As a result, our client received a settlement for $135,000, including $7,000 in cash, a distribution of $26,500 from the individual's profit sharing proceeds, repayment of $50,000 from the sale of her house, and a monthly payment schedule. We also recommended a ten-year suspended sentence subject to the terms of our agreement.
It's important to note, the higher the individual's authority is in the business, the more catastrophic the loss tends to be. Though owners and... Read More
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Do You Suspect Fraud in Your Business?
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 Finding the right person for a job can be a daunting task, particularly under stressful circumstances. If you suspect a leaky pipe in your home, you don't contact a telephone repairman to take a look at it. Rather, you want an expert qualified in their field. It's no different in your business. Fraud detection and investigation is a job best left to experts, but sometimes those experts can be difficult to locate in the vast field of investigation.
Unable to locate an experienced investigator with fraud investigative experience, a newly acquired client turned to Arkansas Investigations. The client was suspicious of fraud in their workplace. We met covertly with the informant at least eight times, in various locations over the course of several weeks to obtain details of the fraud and what the individual was able to testify to. In conjunction with a series of interviews and a volume of records searches, we were able to obtain over 97 sworn statements, and conduct a variety of surveillance. This allowed us to turn over a significant amount of information to our client so they could file lawsuits in federal court for the approximate loss of $4.5 million. At last check, four co-conspirators were named in the lawsuit.
Our client was able to locate Arkansas Investigations because they knew the three most important questions to ask before hiring an investigator for a fraud investigation. A thoughtful business owner will ask: - Do they have the qualifications needed to handle this?
- Do they have the experience to help me with my problem?
- Are they certified fraud examiners?
Arkansas Investigations is able to emphatically answer, "yes" to all three of those questions. We have the specialized training in the area of fraud and are Certified Fraud Examiners, which by its own label identifies someone with specialized experience. There are only a handful of CFE's in Arkansas, and we're the only licensed private investigative agency with a CFE on staff. We've met and interviewed dozens of people who have committed fraud, and we use that information to help you.
Arkansas Investigations has the experts you need to: ... Read more
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| About Us
|  Arkansas Investigations is a premier investigative agency that provides a wide range of investigative services to legal professionals, businesses and individuals anywhere in the state of Arkansas (plus Oklahoma and Louisiana). We are strong advocates for our clients. We conduct quality investigations and provide clear and concise reports of our findings. Our 35-plus years of hands-on experience and training provide our clients with a reliable work product in which they can have confidence. We go above and beyond the call of duty. Our staff includes a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), an experienced legal investigator, a Certified Law Enforcement Instructor (CLEI), a paralegal and a Certified Forensic Computer Examiner as well as a Certified Hacking Forensic Examiner. Our motto is "We Find Answers®" - and that's exactly what we do! Learn more...
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