Dave Brightbill <djb@loligo.cc.fsu.edu> (01/05/90)
I just had an amazing conversation with a PSC (state utility regulation) person about COCOT's in Florida (which, for some strange reason, they call "PADS"). I was calling to bitch about a pay phone with evil alignment and we got to talking about some of the newer COCOT scams which they are currently investigating. There is a guy who is selling installed COCOT's to folks who want to immigrate to this country and need an excuse. The deal is that he sells a phone for around $50,000. The buyer now owns a business in Florida and under US immigration law, can enter the US to attend to his business affairs without having to have a green card. I also learned that COCOTs are a fav of folks with large clumps of cash to launder. They put in a phone and report huge takes in the coin box. Sort of like the vending machine business used to be.
John Higdon <john@bovine.ati.com> (01/05/90)
Dave Brightbill <djb@loligo.cc.fsu.edu> writes: > I also learned that COCOTs are a fav of folks with large clumps > of cash to launder. They put in a phone and report huge takes > in the coin box. Sort of like the vending machine business used to be. Ah, but unlike the old vending machine scam, it would be possible to audit one of these babies and nab the perp. Remember, the cash in the box would have to be at least loosely related to the local charges on the line and the charges from the AOS or LD carrier. A clever IRS man could nail one of these laundramats in a hurry. And the more cash reported, the greater chance an audit would be triggered, particularly if receipts seemed way out of line from the rest of the industry. Just a thought. John Higdon | P. O. Box 7648 | +1 408 723 1395 john@bovine.ati.com | San Jose, CA 95150 | M o o !