SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) – A Manatee County fraud investigation has led to multiple arrests, a federal prison sentence and the identification of more than 40 victims across Florida, according to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators said the operation targeted elderly residents through phone calls, electronic communications and couriers sent to collect cash from victims.
The sheriff’s office said one suspect, Xin Liu, 40, has been sentenced in federal court to 27 months in prison for her role in an elder fraud scheme. Authorities described Liu as a Chinese national and said she was accused of traveling throughout Florida in July 2025 to collect cash from victims and trying to obtain more than $95,000 in fraud proceeds.
According to the sheriff’s office, the investigation began in July 2025 after an elderly Manatee County resident reported being targeted by someone posing as a…
THE TD BANK INSIDER “BRIBE-FOR-DATA” SCHEME (USA)
Date: February 17, 2026 Perpetrator: Edward Low (Former Bank Employee)
Case Description: In a high-profile case of “Insider Threat,” Edward Low, a former employee of TD Bank in New York, pleaded guilty in a New Jersey federal court to accepting bribes in exchange for confidential customer data. Between 2021 and 2022, Low leveraged his internal access to harvest the personal details of high-balance account holders. He then sold this “hot data” to external fraud syndicates for as little as $26,700 in personal kickbacks.
The external fraudsters used the information Low provided to conduct “Account Takeovers” (ATO), creating fraudulent checks and falsifying bank records to drain over $500,000 from unsuspecting customers. Low even went as far as helping co-conspirators open shell company accounts at a second financial institution where he was later employed. He now faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison. This case has sent shockwaves through the global banking sector, highlighting that even the most robust external firewalls cannot protect against a “rogue insider” with administrative credentials.
Link to Original: US Dept of Justice – TD Bank Insider Plea