CMPD Seeking Financial Crime Suspect

Michael Byers

On December 22, 2011 at 18:42 hours, Michael Yashema Byers attempted to send a wire transfer in the amount of $9,400 through the Western Union in the Food Lion located at 5831 South Boulevard. The suspect gave the cashier a stack of bills consisting of 20 and 50 dollar denomination totaling $9,400.

The wire transfer was accepted and the suspect left the scene. The cashier weighed the bills and began to check the bills individually. She discovered that all of the U. S. Treasury notes the suspect gave her were counterfeit notes. The Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department Financial Crimes Unit identified the suspect and obtained a warrant on Michael Byers. Several attempts have been made to locate and arrest the suspect. He has not been located at this time.

If you have information on his whereabouts please contact CrimeStoppers at 704-336-1600 or just dial 911 to provide his location. (The attached photo is from 2006)

Also, the below serial numbers were used on the counterfeit notes. We would encourage area merchants to contact the police if they have related cases involving these serial numbers. 50’s: IK 02818440 A (54), IB 26443230 B (18), JB 44451025 A (19) & 20’s: JG 85175879 B (41), IA 12569562 C (40), GF 85612950 B (39), IF 53962245 H (41),GF 01900491 A (42), IJ 87192882 A (42)

Charlotte Man Charged with Embezzling over 90,000

John Edward Dee

John Edward Dee, former CFO of the Harris Land Company, has been arrested and charged with embezzling $90,600 in additional salary.  He was arrested on April 26, 2011.

CMPD says an outside accountant was doing an audit on Harris Land Company in February and found that Dee had been receiving  unauthorized monies over the past two years. Dee managed the company's payroll and wrote unauthorized checks.

The CMPD Financial Crimes Unit seized several bank documents from John Dee and Dee admitted embezzling some of the money.  In the past two years, Dee bought a $500,000 home in Charlotte as well as another piece of property.

Man Gets 29-37 Years in Prison for Financial Crimes

Gary Keever

On April 20, 2011, Gary Clyde Keever, 55, was found guilty by a Mecklenburg County jury of twenty-one (21) counts of Securities Fraud violations and Obtaining Property by False Pretenses.  Keever was convicted after a two and a half week trial in the Mecklenburg County Courthouse. The Honorable William H. Constangy, Superior Court Judge, sentenced Keever to 29-37 years in prison.

Between 2001 and 2007, Keever operated a Ponzi scheme where he took money from investors, promising them that he would use that money to purchase mortgage notes, service them for 6-12 months, and resell them for a profit.  Instead, Keever used $636,254 in investor money to make returns to earlier investors and for his personal use and benefit.

The bank record evidence showed that 51% of money coming into Keever’s accounts were investor funds; yet, at least 75% of the money coming out of his accounts were for personal expenses. Keever used investor money to pay for trips to Hawaii, Mexico and other locations. He also purchased vehicles, clothing, jewelry, and paid his personal bills. The evidence showed that Keever never purchased, serviced, or sold any mortgage notes.

Keever was previously convicted in the mid-1990s for five counts of Obtaining Property by False Pretenses for similar activity.  In those cases, Keever promised investors he would purchase bonds with their money, but in fact never purchased any bonds.

CMPD Financial Crimes Unit Detectives Make an Arrest

Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department Financial Crimes Unit Detectives have arrested Wayne Walter Smith, Jr. for the Exploitation of an Elder Adult.

The elderly victim met Mr. Smith through her church and was also the realtor that sold her house. The victim remained friends with Mr. Smith and his family. In October 2007, the victim signed a power of attorney giving Mr. Smith control of her finances, an excess of $150,000. The victim was in an assisted living facility at this time.

In March 2009, a friend of the victim’s contacted the police department regarding adult exploitation. A referral was made to the Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services/Adult Protective Services Division and a joint investigation began with the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department. A warrant was obtained for Mr. Smith and he was arrested on November 24, 2010 and charged with Exploitation of an Elder Adult.

The Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department encourages individuals to look for signs of possible exploitation:

* Unexplained withdrawals of money
* Using deceit, treachery, or coercion to obtain money
* Unusually interest by anyone in the older or disabled adult's finances
* Difference between assets and lifestyles
* Unusually large payments for services rendered
* Failure to pay for basic needs (lights, phone)
* Inappropriate sexual activities

Call 704-336-CARE (2273) to report suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation.

Secret Service Looking for Couple Stealing ATM Numbers

The U.S. Secret Service Charlotte Office is looking for a couple who first started scamming people by stealing ATM Numbers and PIN's in the Charlotte area in 2008.

Since then, they spent a year and a half scamming folks in Florida but now they are back in the Charlotte area.

Since August 1st, they have hit four ATM's in the Charlotte area stealing an unknown number of people's ATM card and pin numbers.

If you know who they are, you're asked to call the Secret Service at (704) 442-8370.

'Account Take Over' Suspects Wanted

CMPD is asking for the public's assistance in locating the three people shown in the photographs above. All of the suspects are involved in what is called "Account Take Over’s."

The suspect(s) obtain the bank account information of the unsuspecting account holders by calling them at home and use this information to make counterfeit checks, deposit the check(s) into the accounts; at which point they would go into the bank and cash the counterfeit checks.

The suspect(s) have also pretended to be the account holder and have called the bank in an attempt to allow the transactions to go through. Financial crimes unit is requesting information to identify and locate these suspects, which have so far compromised of two separate accounts.

Anyone with information regarding these three individuals is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600.

Father & Son Charged with False Pretense for Stealing from Churches

On March 21st, Metro Division officers responded to a False Pretense at Reeder Memorial Church, located at 3725 Beatties Ford. The officer was met by two church employees who advised that the suspect had been to the church twice in the last two days telling church employees that a family member had been in a car crash and asking for money to get home to see them.

In between the first and second visit, the church had been notified by e-mail about the suspect and his father (with pictures) committing this crime at another church. The witnesses identified that the suspect who was getting in his vehicle to flee the scene. He was stopped and arrested before he could leave the parking lot. Further Investigation determined that the suspect's family members had not been hurt and that the subject was using a false story to get money from the church.

Travis Twitty (Top Photo) was also wanted in two other counties in North Carolina for similar charges using similar methods. Travis Twitty was arrested and charged with False Pretense. He was also served with Felony False Pretense warrants from Alamance and Moore County where a similar offense had been committed.

His father, David O'Neal Twitty, (Bottom Photo) was not involved in the Charlotte incident but is WANTED for similar felony offenses he committed with his son in Alamance and Moore County. David Twitty has over fifty prior arrests for various offenses committed in North and South Carolina. His last arrest was on 2/26/2009.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts or information on David or Travis Twitty’s involvement in other crimes should call Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600. That information will be forwarded to Patrol Officers and the Financial Crimes Unit.