Quote:
'US storm fraudsters paid $1.4bn'
The US government gave up to $1.4bn in bogus assistance to victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita last year, congressional inspectors have found.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency was tricked into funding hundreds of fraudulent schemes, the report said.
Money was spent on American football tickets, a holiday, a divorce lawyer and a sex change operation, it said.
Debit cards handed out by Fema to people displaced by the storms bought diamond jewellery, champagne and erotic videos, the congressional audit discovered.
Investigators also found hundreds of claims from false addresses and rental assistance paid to prisoners.
A supposed victim who used a New Orleans cemetery for a home address and a person who spent 70 days at a Hawaiian hotel were among the claimants, the report said.
The US government gave up to $1.4bn in bogus assistance to victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita last year, congressional inspectors have found.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency was tricked into funding hundreds of fraudulent schemes, the report said.
Money was spent on American football tickets, a holiday, a divorce lawyer and a sex change operation, it said.
Debit cards handed out by Fema to people displaced by the storms bought diamond jewellery, champagne and erotic videos, the congressional audit discovered.
Investigators also found hundreds of claims from false addresses and rental assistance paid to prisoners.
A supposed victim who used a New Orleans cemetery for a home address and a person who spent 70 days at a Hawaiian hotel were among the claimants, the report said.
So the secret is "Aim for the stars"
Next time I sit on a blanket by the ATM with a dog on a string and a McD's cup held out, my placard will read "Homeless. Please spare a Platinum Card Account and a BMW Z4."
