We all know the premise.  Robin Hood takes from the rich and gives to the poor. Unfortunately, not all thieves are so noble. Please read on.

The Orange County Business Journal and Forbes Magazine blogger Mark Lacter recently reported on a modern story based on the classic tale of a wealthy land owner who falls prey to a dastardly thief.  In this case, the alleged crook  Moundir Kamil, decided to keep $1.4 million in loot for himself after commandeering  a large IRS tax refund check. The wealthy land owner in our modern tale is billionaire California real estate mogul Donald Bren.

According to the Orange County Business Journal:

“News of the bizarre theft went on to get national exposure as questions arose about how a 40-something suspect—who listed his occupation merely as “smoke shop” operator and looks nothing like the 78-year-old Bren—could make off with the identity and money of OC’s most prominent businessman. The refund check Kamil allegedly stole was the result of overpayment of estimated quarterly taxes by Bren. When and how the suspect managed to get the check wasn’t stated in the initial complaint, nor is it mentioned in the government’s updated charges for Kamil.”

Although authorities have not disclosed how Kamil came into posession of the check, it is clear that he was somehow able to pass himself off as the victim. Not only did he deposit the loot into a newly opened bank account, he withdrew most of it before being captured.

Thanks to an eagle-eyed prison guard who recognized surveillance photos of the culprit, the fraudster’s identity was uncovered. It seems that Kamil had previously been caught stealing from the rich.  He is not just a disappointment to Robin Hood fans, worldwide.  The parole board has to be a little embarrased and disappointed to have released a 9 time bank robber back into the general population in Sherwood Forest.

Sooner or later, a criminal’s luck runs out. That’s what happened to a group of identity thieves who recently bit off more than they could chew.

The Associated Press reported this week that a ring of counterfeit check scammers got themselves into a mess that could keep them on ice for quite some time, at the expense of the taxpayers in the state of Oregon.

Most police agencies have one person who is considered their “go-to” expert on certain types of cases. In this case the cop is Barbara Glass. She is a veteran police officer who has nearly 20 years of service under her utility belt.

According to the report, Glass has served all those years:

” including eight specializing in ID and fraud investigations. During her investigation into the check ring, she got an e-mail from a Safeway store to alert her that her name had showed up as the signee on one of the bogus checks (that was) passed.”

I was immediately reminded of the value of some type of early warning, late warning, any warning that can inform a victim that they have been compromised. Most consumers have done NOTHING to erect an early warning system for themselves.

Many people who have purchased some type of identity theft protection are still vulnerable to ongoing abuse. Unlike the timely and coincidental email from Safeway in this case, most of us have no form of notification or early warning set up for us until it’s too late.

Officer Glass told The Oregonian newspaper that she nearly fell off her chair.  Glass recalls shouting out to her partner, Officer Dave Staab “My name!” Her full name was handwritten on a fake check and cashed back in April.

This story hits close to home because I remember the day my wife and I had the same conversation. Counterfeit checks were presented and cashed all over town with our bank information and a signature that wasn’t even close to mine.

In my case, the culprits were never identified, but due to the police work of Officers Glass and Staab, the Multnomah County Deputy District attorney will soon have a case to prosecute.

Thanks to some inspired police work, three suspects have had the spotlight shined on thier own identities and are now awaiting their day in court.

I don’t think a check payable to the bailiff will get them off the hook this time.

Real Estate: Homeowners who are behind on payments or seeking refinancing sources can easily fall prey to unscrupulous thieves who are more than willing to “take your information and see what we can do”. Bogus land grants and home equity scams will be commonplace. The recommendation is that homeowners speak directly with well known and established banking and mortgage companies in order to avoid the potential pitfalls of unknown solution providers.

Credit Cards: Many consumers may unknowingly turn to thieves in order to get access to credit cards, debit cards and debt consolidation loans. It is easy to imagine handing over private information to seemingly legitimate companies. Like the mortgage industry, the credit card world has been turned on it’s head in the current economic climate. Look before you “leap” into a deal that may be too good to be true.

Check Fraud: Due to the lack of easy credit, many thieves will turn to check fraud as a way to accomplish their crimes. Needless to say, safeguard your checkbook, deposit slips and banking statements as a first line of defense. Many financial advisers are steering clients away from using paper checks at all. If you must write paper checks, be sure to use an anti-check-washing gel pen and keep a close eye out for any irregularities on your statement.

Organized Crime and Cyber-Thieves- Rings of professional thieves from all over the world have helped make identity theft the fastest growing crime in the United States. Security experts agree that these attacks will become more brazen as time goes by. According to the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has been reviewing “worst case scenarios” for possible attacks against U.S. government, industrial and financial institutions.

Consumer Scams: Common and rampant scams with nicknames such as skimming, phishing, vishing, pharming and whaling will continue in 2009. This is largely due to the weak condition of the U.S. economy, the vulnerability of average consumer and law enforcement’s scarcity of resources to deal with the sheer volume of complaints.

Breaches: Corporate, educational and government security breaches continue to grow every year. According to the ITRC, there were 641 breaches in 2008, surpassing the total of 446 in 2007. Due to the portability of data, the easy theft of laptops, the cunning deception of “inside scam artists” and the desperation of global perpetrators, this number will continue to increase. At the very least, have your own laptop or PDA/smart-phone set up with encryption and password protection software.

Remaining diligent, alert and informed about the latest scams and threats is your best defense against being victimized in 2009. Stay tuned.