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12 SIGNS OF AN ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIP

6/20/2022

Today's article is one I wish we never had to discuss, much less write about, but based on the increase in case work we've seen the last several months I just felt like it needed to be written. I'm not sure what's caused the uptick in Domestic Violence (DV) cases recently, and I'm definitely not one who looks to make excuses for any of societies ills. The list of excuses is long and there are plenty of people out here who are more than happy to make excuses for someone's behavior other than they are just a miserable human being who brings nothing to society. Here's a list of what I've seen working DV cases over the past years. If you recognize any of these in your relationship you need to strongly consider exiting the situation.

1. Controlling Behavior

I've seen this in almost 100% of DV cases I've worked. When one partner in a relationship absolutely controls the other, something's not right. "Where are you going?", "Where have you been?", "Why didn't you answer my call/text?" are not questions that are regularly asked in a healthy relationship. If your partner exhibits controlling behavior it's time to find a way out.

2. Extreme Jealousy

This goes along with the previously mentioned Controlling Behavior. If your spouse/significant other sees flirting where there is none, affairs when there are none, thinks you're on the prowl when nothing could be further than the truth, it is not healthy. I've often found when that when one partner exhibits extreme jealousy it's usually a sign that they have something going on the side and assume you do as well.

3. Forced Sex

If your partner forces you to have sex whenever you don't want it, you very well could be a victim of Domestic Violence. No partner, and it's usually males, should ever force another to participate in sex when the other partner doesn't want to. This is just another way to control a person and establish dominance. If you've ever been forced to have sex, particularly through physical aggression, you need to get out of this relationship. Give us a call and we can help you gather evidence to be used in any legal proceeding.

4. Verbal Abuse

Does your partner or significant other call you every name in the book with none of them being nice? In another form of controlling behavior, a person who verbally abuses another, especially one who's supposed to be their partner, only does it as a form of control and to make the person on the receiving end feel like they are worthless. I've seen verbal abuse used by cheating spouses to deflect away from their infidelity.

5. History of Battery

When you started to first get serious about the person you're in a relationship with, did you think about having a background investigation done on them? I strongly recommend that any one who is moving forward in a relationship with another person, hire a private investigator to conduct a background investigation on them. We can find out if they have a history of battery, have been named in Restraining Orders, have a history of arrests for domestic violence, etc. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. An individual with a history of abuse/battery is more than likely to continue that abuse in every relationship they enter into.

6. Relationship Fast Forward

This is one sign we caution clients we work for to be especially weary of. Any time a person tries to fast forward a relationship it should be cause for concern. Fast forwarding a relationship means, in the simplest of terms, wanting to spend every waking moment with a new partner that a person just met, saying "I Love You" much sooner than one would expect, wanting to cohabitate much sooner than is normal, and many other fast forwarding signs.

7. Isolation

Does one partner try to keep the other from spending time with friends, family or work associates? This is a technique used by abusers to separate their victim from anyone who might offer support or could point out that someone is an abuser. It's been my experience that isolation is a main tool a domestic abuser will use.

8. Cruelty to Animals and/or Kids

This one is a major RED FLAG!!! If you're with someone who is cruel to animals and/or kids, especially if they are yours, grab your stuff and run away as quickly as you can. So many studies have shown that some of the most prolific serial killers showed signs of being cruel to animals and/or kids in their past. If you see or experience this call local law enforcement and report it. If they aren't helping you, and oftentimes they can't until they have proof, call us and we'll help you gather evidence of this to put these POS's in jail!!! Nothing I hate more than someone who's cruel to animals and/or kids.

9. Violent Behavior or Threats of Violence

It should go without saying that violent behavior or threats of violence is one of the 12 indicators of an abusive relationship, but I'll point it out any way. If your spouse/significant other is violent, towards you or anyone else, or constantly levels threats of violence towards you, you're in an abusive relationship.

10. It's Not My Fault

Another trait I've seen over the years in abusive relationships is what I refer to as the "It's Not My Fault" excuse that all abusers fall back on. It's never their fault that they slapped you in the face, punched you in the mouth, pulled your hair, etc. It's always the victim's fault that "caused" the abuser to act out. If you're being blamed for the abuse you're suffering, you need to get out.

11. Hyper Sensitive

Many domestic abusers exhibit signs of hyper sensitivity. The abused partner will end up feeling like they are always walking on eggshells as the abuser has a hair trigger and gets set off by the slightest perceived injustice.

12. Perfection Complex

Our final sign of an abusive relationship is when the abuser suffers from a perfection complex. Not that they have to be perfect, oh no, you, the abused partner, must be perfect. If you're not living up to the perfection they demand, there's usually a price to be paid. Don't put up with it as you'll never be able to live up to what's expected and there will punishment delved out when perfection isn't achieved.

Hopefully this article well help someone out there who's in an abusive relationship and maybe didn't realize they were. Don't know how to get out of abusive relationship? Contact our firm and we can discuss various ways to gather evidence of the abuse and work with law enforcement to put the abuser where they belong. Under the jail.

Lee Walters
President
EXCALIBUR Private Investigation
Colorado Springs, Colorado
719.208.4088

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COLORADO PASSES UPDATED FALSE CLAIMS ACT

6/10/2022

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As a firm that's worked with many whistleblowers and been responsible for developing numerous False Claims Act/Qui tam cases, we were happy to learn that the State of Colorado has finally updated the state's False Claims Act. Prior to this new law being passed, whistleblowers could only file a Qui tam if it involved State Medicaid funds. It never made sense to us that whistleblowers who knew about other potential False Claims cases, couldn't file in Colorado unless it involved fraudulent use of Medicaid funds and now that's been corrected.

Many of you may be wondering what a False Claims Act/Qui tam case is. It's actually been around since the Civil War and was originally known as the Lincoln Law. During the Civil War President Abraham Lincoln spearheaded a law, which became the False Claims Act, that said anyone who had information that the U.S. Government was being defrauded could bring a lawsuit on behalf of the United States. If the government clawed back any amount of monies from the fraudster, the whistleblower, also known as the Relator, would get a percentage of the recovery, normally 15 - 30%. Not a bad deal for doing the right thing and reporting fraud. This law was spurred on by unscrupulous business men selling lame horses and spoiled food to the Union army.

“The False Claims Act is the most successful anti-fraud law protecting taxpayers and preventing corruption in government programs,” said leading whistleblower attorney Stephen M. Kohn of Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto. “Colorado stands to generate billions in revenues by policing fraud in government sponsored programs, both by deterring violations and holding fraudsters accountable. The Colorado lawmakers who have made these improvements possible should be commended.”

The CFCA was cosponsored by Representative Matt Gray, Representative Mike Weissman, and Senator Faith Winter. The law enhances enforcement efforts against individuals and companies who fraudulently use taxpayer dollars. Types of frauds covered by the CFCA include the submission of false or fraudulent claims to state or local governments and the falsification of records material to false claims. The CFCA greatly expands the types of contracting frauds which whistleblowers may bring forth qui tam suits over.

The federal False Claims Act has been described as “the most powerful tool the American people have to protect the government from fraud.” Since the law was modernized in 1986, False Claims Act whistleblowers have allowed the government to recover over $70 billion. Correspondingly, False Claim Act whistleblowers have received over $8 billion.

If you have information of fraudulent activity involving state of Colorado funds, or U.S. funds for that matter, contact us and we can provide advice on what's the best way to handle your case. We have relationships with several top law firms in the country and can work with you to make sure your case is handled by a firm that has the best chance of getting the government to intervene in the case and take it to fruition.

Lee Walters
President
EXCALIBUR Private Investigation
Colorado Springs, Colorado
719.208.4088

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FAKE ART? FBI CRACKS DOWN ON PRETEND ART DEALER

6/9/2022

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Art Crime article and Colorado Springs Private Investigator

As a former member of the FBI's Art Crime Team, I'm always on the lookout for new cases being worked by the team. Recently a Florida gallery owner was arrested on federal charges for peddling fake art pieces, claiming the cheap reproductions were in fact originals by Andy Warhol, Banksy, Roy Lichtenstein, Jean-Michel Basquiat and others, federal prosecutors said.

A complaint filed in South Florida federal court Thursday accused the Palm Beach art dealer Daniel Elie Bouaziz of mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in his alleged scheme to sell forged copies of high-end art.

Bouaziz, a French citizen of Algerian descent, was ordered released on $500,000 bail after an initial hearing Friday. As of Friday he had not yet entered a plea to the charges, according to court records. He's looking at several years of federal prison time, but we'll see what he actually ends up getting. It was my experience that judges didn't see art crime as big of a deal as, say, bank robbery.

Bouaziz sold some of the forged art pieces for hundreds of thousands of dollars apiece, prosecutors said. An FBI criminal affidavit said undercover agents put $22 million down for several of the fake pieces which was a heck of a lot more than anything I've seen spent on an art crime case before. Glad to see there's plenty of money for investigations these days.

Claiming to be an art expert and an official appraiser, Bouaziz appraised the inauthentic artwork he sold to the victims at an increased rate, the FBI affidavit said. In one extreme example, the FBI says Bouaziz bought a Warhol reproduction print for $100 and sold it for $85,000.

He operated two art galleries on Palm Beach's famed Worth Avenue, one of the wealthiest places in the U.S. Con men understand that looking the part is a huge piece of the con if you want it to be successful. Of course he had to lay out funds to open galleries in those high-rent districts, but he knew it was a good investment if he could continue to get away with selling fake pieces of art.

The FBI did not observe a single transaction in his bank accounts in which Bouaziz, or his galleries, purchased high-value artwork, the affidavit says. Bouaziz purchased low-cost reproductions from online auction sites that he then resold to unsuspecting victims, as originals, at drastically increased prices. In an overheated art market there are victims literally lining up to be taken advantage of, all suffering from FOMO (Fear of Missing Out).

For example, an original Andy Warhol painting would likely sell for millions of dollars. Bouaziz, according to the FBI, sold one of Warhol's works called Superman, of which there were several versions, for just $25,000.

"I buy about 200 paintings in auction every year and I guarantee my stuff. I mean I am behind my stuff," Bouaziz said in a conversation recorded by the FBI. "I'm not buying things that everybody has. That's why you don't see them in the other galleries."

The affidavit does not say how many people were victimized. Bouaziz will have a plea hearing on June 15 and no trial date has been set as of yet. Many times victims are too embarrassed to come forward so it will be interesting to see if the government ever gets a true accounting of how many fake pieces were sold.

Lee Walters
President
EXCALIBUR Private Investigation

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12 SIGNS OF AN ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIP

COLORADO PASSES UPDATED FALSE CLAIMS ACT

FAKE ART? FBI CRACKS DOWN ON PRETEND ART DEALER

Colorado Springs Private Investigator

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