Thomas Katona, who was treasurer of the county for thirteen years, has been charged with forgery and multiple counts of embezzlement. Both charges carry a jail sentence of ten years or more.
County treasury employees became suspicious of Katona's dealings after local bank officials informed them that he had directed several unauthorized transfers to overseas accounts during late 2006, including to beneficiaries linked with Nigerian 419 scams.
"Nigerian scam e-mails promise the world but deliver nothing in return for the cash that people continue to invest," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos.
419 scams are named after the relevant section of the Nigerian penal code where many of the scams originated and are unsolicited e-mails where the author offers a large amount of money. Once a victim has been drawn in, requests are made from the fraudster for private information which may lead to requests for money, stolen identities, and financial theft.
"There's not much that can be done to stop people who serve up their wallets on a plate to scammers," continued Cluley.
