Hays has extensive experience in investigating and recovering funds associated with alleged fraudulent activity. We investigate alleged fraud through various techniques including forensic accounting, funds tracing, asset searches and electronic data discovery. Documents and electronic records are researched using both internal and external sources to unravel the alleged fraud and identify hidden, lost or stolen money, investments and hard assets.

Once the alleged fraud is identified, we work closely with legal counsel to provide litigation support and serve as witnesses, as appropriate. We are extensively involved in recovering and disposing of assets to maximize the fraud victim’s recovery.

Forensic Accounting and Funds Tracing

We have extensive experience and expertise in investigating alleged fraud and tracing funds through the alleged fraudster’s web of corporate entities and bank accounts. We have developed specific funds tracing procedures and expertise and use these techniques to quickly follow the money trail. We prepare detailed funds tracing database reports and verify accounting records to trace funds through hundreds of bank accounts, eliminating all transfers between companies and accounts to provide a report of the ultimate sources and uses of funds.

Select Forensic Accounting Experience:

Parish Economics
Investigated this $110 million Ponzi scheme that operated for over 10 years. Traced funds through 21 bank accounts and developed a transaction database with over 16,000 transactions and $286 million in transactions.

Pinnacle Development Partners
Investigated this real estate investment fraud case. Traced funds through 48 bank accounts including over 11,000 transactions representing $285 million in transactions.

Travis Correll/Horizon Establishment
Investigated this $150 million prime bank fraud and built a database with over 55,000 transactions in over 80 bank accounts.

Regional Jeweler
We were engaged by a financial institution to assist them in the marshaling and inventorying of various pieces of gold and silver jewelry, watches, and similar items which they had a lien against as collateral for a loan.

Mobile Billboard of America
Investigated this $80 million Ponzi scheme and traced funds through 195 bank accounts including over 67,000 transactions.

Lake Dow Capital
Traced over $26 million through investment accounts and prepared detailed reports that assisted in recovery from the primary brokerage company. Also traced and recovered funds from European accounts.

CM Vaughn LLC
Traced over $10 million in funds in a private hedge fund. The analysis traced funds to the purchase of a house, cars, boats and other assets.

Cornerstone Capital
Traced over $3 million through investment accounts.

Forensic Data Recovery / E-Discovery
Hays utilizes electronic data discovery techniques (E-Discovery) to search for electronic digital evidence critical in investigating fraudulent activity and recovering funds. In almost every case, our forensic team begins to recover and preserve electronic data on the day of our appointment. E-Discovery saves investigation costs and reduces the costs to identify and recover funds. We use state-of-the-art software and hardware to preserve, recover and analyze electronically-stored information from hard drives, CD’s, DVD’s, USB drives, PDA’s, and cell phones. Specialized software and processes are used to recover hidden, encrypted, password-protected or deleted files from the electronic data. Hays is experienced in harvesting and preserving electronic data to protect and to assure its admissibility in court.

Please click here to contact us with questions regarding Forensic Accounting.

Please click here to contact us with questions regarding Electronic Data Discovery.