Forged diplomas, changed grades and fictitious test in English are flooding into the University of Lund ahead of this year’s start of term. Most are from foreign students.The university has already received 1000 false applications from Pakistan alone. And a large number of forgeries are never found out, Swedish newspaper Sydsvenskan wrote on Sunday.In Pakistan there is a central administration to help them find out what is true and what is faked, but in many countries it is much more complicated and every single school or university must be contacted.Sometimes it is impossible to find out or it takes so long that the student has already lost their place when the answer arrives and the application turns out to be bona fide. This year a couple of students from Cameroon have lost their places on their course of choice because the verification process took too long, according to Swedish news agency TT

Bishop’s House, Soppo
P.O. Box 64, Buea
South West Province, Cameroon
E-Mail: dioceseofbuea@ yahoo.com
Tel: (00237) 332 22 41 / Fax (00237) 332 26 71

PASTORAL LETTER TO ALL CHRIST’S FAITHFUL AND
PEOPLE OF GOODWILL IN THE DIOCESE OF BUEA
ABOUT THE CREATION OF THE CATHOLIC
UNIVERSITY OF THE DIOCESE OF BUEA
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
The Peace of the Lord be with you. 
I.        INTRODUCTION.
Among the many requests that the People of the Diocese of Buea have presented to me since I became the Bishop of Buea on 30l January, 2007, the creation of a Catholic University of the Diocese of Buea, has been one of the top priorities. I formed an Ad hoc committee soon after my installation, to study the possibility, feasibility and necessity of founding and running a university of the Diocese of Buea, and a lot of ground work has been done. Practically all the people who were consulted around the Diocese on this issue, were not only in favour of the idea, but also expressed willingness to support the idea in any way possible to come to fruition.
In accordance with “Ex Corde Ecclesiae” (The Apostolic Constitution on Catholic Universities by Pope John Paul II) and the Code of Canon Law, every diocese has the inherent right to found and own a Diocesan University and running a university is in line with the teaching of Christ who commanded the Apostles to go and teach all nations (Mtt.28:l8-20) . In fact, the Code of Canon Law states that “The Church has the right to establish and to govern universities, -which serve to promote the deeper culture and fuller development of the human person, and to complement the Church’s own teaching office” (Can.807).

According to the laws governing higher education in Cameroon, the creation and running of every university that has to issue secular and recognized degrees must be authorized by the Government of Cameroon. Seeing the need and being convinced that the Diocese of Buea needs its own university,  I asked the Ad hoc committee to go ahead and compile documents for the creation of the Catholic  University of the Diocese of Buea,  for submission to the Ministry of  Higher Education in Yaounde.  On

the 9th of October, 2008, the Diocese of Buea, deposited a complete file addressed to the Honourable Minister of Higher Education in Yaounde, requesting authorization to create a Catholic University of the Diocese of Buea.
II. WHY THE DIOCESE OF BUEA NEEDS ITS OWN UNIVERSITY
We considered that in a country like ours where development is still at the primary stage; a country in which the population is growing very rapidly; a country which turns out thousands of youngsters as successful candidates in the General Certificate of Education Examinations and the Baccalaureate; a country from which thousands of students travel abroad and even to neighbouring countries in search for higher education, the creation of more universities is an urgent necessity. This should be so because of the glaring inadequacies of existing universities and study facilities, inadequate curricula content, and the slow pace of executing new projects and plans, both by the private and public sectors.
We also considered that the present Catholic Institute for Central Africa situated in Yaounde, welcomes students from the whole of the Central African region, and thus narrows the possibility of our children who wish to study there. More so, there is the great cry of the people of the Diocese of Buea, to get a Catholic university which will be grounded in solid Anglo-Saxon traditions, and contribute to the formation of conscientious Cameroonians.
As at the academic year 2007/2008, when this cry was launched for the creation of the Catholic University of Buea, out of the more than 20.000 students who applied for admission into the Buea University, the university could admit only one quarter of these students. This means that close to 16.000 students had to look elsewhere to continue their education. There are many other students who would love to attend Buea University, but do not apply because their career objectives are not offered by the said University. The Buea Diocesan University, as a witness to this reality, would meet the needs of these stray students.
The Diocese of Buea alone runs 15 Secondary and High Schools with a population of 5.954 students and 73 primary schools with a total of 24.407 pupils. These are young Cameroonians who are potential candidates for

2
admission in the Catholic University, and who have a right to choose a confessional institution for their tertiary stage of education.
As the Bishop of Buea, having considered the spiritual, demographic, socio-economic situation of the Diocese of Buea, and in consultation with both the College of Consultors and the Diocesan Council for Education, I have decided to create a Catholic University to provide opportunities for students to benefit from the fruits of Tertiary Catholic Education. 1 went ahead, taking cognizance of the autonomy enjoyed by every diocese as guaranteed by canon 369 of the Code of Canon Law.
III.      ORIENTATION  AND    MISSION    OF  THE    CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF THE DIOCESE OF BUEA.
The Catholic University of the Diocese of Buea will be more professionally orientated. Its main mission will be to make available a higher institute of learning that will provide vocational and professionally marketable skills to college leavers. The university will target the cultivation of a culture of self-employment and auto-job creation for the masses of unemployed young people that graduate from our higher institutions every year.
The Catholic University of Buea will focus towards the integral development of the human person, who is both body and spirit, basing its sciences on the real source of Wisdom who is God. The university will drift away from the academic distortions of the period of the Enlightenment where universities produced intellectual giants who were emotional and spiritual dwarfs. Our university will not only provide intellectual formation but also human, moral and spiritual formation that will make the graduate sensitive to the needs of man around his environment, the evils of bribery and corruption, the need for building and developing our Cameroonian society, and the desire to compete with top brains from other universities in research and discovery.
IV. GOOD NEWS TO THE DIOCESE OF BUEA.
On the 18th of June, 2009, I received a letter from the Ministry of Higher Education, Protocol number 09/0194, dated 11th June, 2009, in reply to our request to create the Catholic University of the Diocese of Buea. It is good news indeed for the whole Diocese.  This letter informed me that the

3
National Commission for Private Higher Education had met and given a favourable consideration to our application to create the Catholic University Institute of the Diocese of Buea, and this is the good news I am communicating to you all today in this letter.
It is our intention to begin this University Institute with four professional Schools; i.e., the School of Management and Social Sciences, the School of Engineering, the School of Information Technology and the School of Agriculture, Forestry and Animal Husbandry. More schools will be added in the course of time, and as the university grows.
Although we are still compiling the file requesting authorization to run this newly created Catholic University of the Diocese of Buea, it is hoped, that everything being equal, the university will open its doors to the pioneer batch of students in October, 2010. We hope to get 2 simultaneous campuses in Bonjongo and in Buea. This means we must start working very hard from now till the opening date of this our new creation.
V.  AN APPEAL TO ALL THE PEOPLE OF THE DIOCESE OF BUEA.
It is only a couple of weeks ago, since I issued a pastoral letter, informing ail the members of Christ’s Faithful and people of goodwill in the Diocese of Buea about the plans for a new Cathedral to be situated in Molyko. This is a very giant project and many people are already sacrificing so much to ensure the smooth take-off of this cathedral project. Here again comes another giant project for the Diocese of Buea, the new university. We shall not fear because it is God’s work we are doing and not our own.
Although this new university will belong to the Diocese of Buea, it will open its doors to all those who are searching for knowledge, irrespective of nationality, religion, race, sex, ethnic group and language. It is against this background that I am appealing to all people who are resident within the territorial boundaries of Buea, people of the Diocese who are resident outside the Diocese, and other people of goodwill to put all hands on deck to make sure that we give our children quality tertiary education. We need to put up the buildings, recruit qualified staff, get enough didactic and technical material to make sure that this university gets a smooth take off. This will be a project that will be ongoing for a very long time in the future.

UNOFFICIAL CLASSIFICATION AFTER DAY 1

Team Play Win Lost Draw Goals For Goals Ag Goal Diff Points

1) MECA FC 2 1 0 1 7 4 +4 4

3) MECUDAS FC 2 0 0 2 4 4 0 2

2) ABAS FC 1 0 0 1 3 3 0 1

4) NACS FC 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 1

5) SAWA FC 1 0 1 1 1 7 -2 1

Top highest goals scorers so far:

1. Henry ayuk (bukande) : 4
2. hans of sawa : 3 goals
3. kingsley agbor (boy king) 2 goals
4. Romeo (abas) :2 goals
5. Higinus alehmbong :2 goal

The traffickers allegedly supplied women for the sex trade across Europe

Spanish police have arrested 23 people suspected of trafficking Nigerian women into the country and forcing them into prostitution by using voodoo curses.

Experts said the women were scared into submission because of a vow they were forced to take on the graves of their ancestors before they left Nigeria.

The money the women earned was then kept until they had paid off the debt incurred getting to Spain, police said.

The traffickers allegedly supplied women for the sex trade across Europe.

Earlier this month, 11 people went on trial in the Netherlands accused of using voodoo to force up to 150 Nigerian women and girls into prostitution in Europe.

Prosecutors said most were minors at the time they disappeared from Dutch asylum centres, ending up in Italy, Spain and France.

‘Black magic‘

In a statement, Spanish police said they had detained 23 people after raids on 10 homes across the country. Material used in voodoo rituals, computer equipment and several passports were also seized.

FROM BBC WORLD SERVICE

A DAY WITHOUT LAUGHTER IS A WAISTED DAY!

Credit Card, ID Theft Ring Busted in Queens

Investigated since 2007, code name- ‘Operation Plastic Pipe-line’ ends with nearly Four Dozen Individuals Charged! Counterfeit Credit Cards Used To Steal Money and Buy Electronic Goods that Were Later Fenced; Stolen Credit Cards Allegedly Used Around the Globe Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown, joined by Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly, today announced that an international forged credit card and identity theft ring based in the New York- metropolitan area and with roots in Nigeria has been successfully dismantled following the indictment this week of forty-five individuals. The ring – which was comprised of three separate identity theft and forged credit card groups that employed multiple cells – is alleged to have been responsible for stealing the credit cards and personal credit information of thousands of American and Canadian consumers, costing these individuals, as well as financial institutions and retail businesses, more than $12 million in losses over the past year alone.

District Attorney Brown said, “Our investigation reveals that – in terms of just the sheer number of people indicted – this is one of the largest identity theft networks uncovered in recent history and is just possibly the tip of a much larger global credit card tra fficking operation. Besides draining the bank accounts of individuals throughout North America, we believe that the defendants – some of whom live in California, Illinois, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Toronto – also shipped stolen or fraudulently obtained credit cards to buyers around the world and that purchases were made in such far-off places as Japan, Saudi Arabia and Dubai. Particularly disturbing is that we have no way of knowing if any of these accounts have fallen into the hands of terrorists and are being used to finance their terrorist activities or to undermine the efforts of homeland security and other law enforcement officials intent on keeping our borders and citizens safe. Such a serious threat to public safety cannot go unchallenged. We will continue to work closely with our law enforcement colleagues to stamp out such fraud and help to maintain our nation’s safety and security.”

District Attorney Brown added, “Technological advances have made it increasingly easier to carry out identity theft and fraud – two of the fastest growing crimes in the United States and which afflicts millions of victims and costs billions of dollars in losses to consumers, businesses and financial institutions. In this case, some of the defendants are alleged to have activated consumers’ credit cards by utilizing SpoofCards which allow a caller to disguise the telephone number they’re calling from and even their voice and gender.=2 0From a law enforcement perspective, such cards are anything but a spoof. They are virtually untraceable and can be used by identity thieves and hackers to pose as government and financial entities as a means to unscrupulously obtain personal information from unsuspecting consumers and also by defendants in domestic violence cases to harass their victims.”

Commissioner Kelly said, “When these suspects said ‘charge it’ they stole more than cash and goods.

They robbed unsuspecting victims of their identities too. This was a sophisticated crime ring which met its just end through painstaking investigation by NYPD detectives and unstinting support by Queens prosecutors.”

District Attorney Brown said that the defendants have been charged in a series of indictments charging 784 pattern acts with, among other crimes, Enterprise Corruption under New York State’s Organized Crime Control Act. They are accused of being members and associates of three organized criminal enterprises that operated in Queens County and elsewhere and that, between April 18, 2008, and April 23, 2009, systematically schemed to defraud thousands of unsuspecting consumers and financial institutions – such as Citibank, Bank of America, Chase and HSBC and a series of Canadian banks – including President’s Choice Bank, CIBC, MBNA Canada and Bank of Montreal.

According to the charges, suppliers in the ring fraudulently obtained credit card accounts to be compromised. The accounts included NRI (non-r eceived as issued) accounts [accounts where a credit or debit card was mailed to an account holder but was never actually received by the account holder]; accounts that were fraudulently taken over; and accounts that were fraudulently opened. Once the suppliers obtained the accounts, they would get the accounts prepared so that they could be accessed by leaders of identity theft cells. This was accomplished by turning the accounts over to:

• Account preparers – responsible for activating the accounts, which usually involved placing a phone call to a financial institution and impersonating the account holder by pretending to be calling from the account holder’s home phone. This was accomplished by using a Spoof Card, which allows a person to change the number that appears on the receiver’s caller ID and can make a man’s voice sound like a woman’s and vice versa. The account preparer would also change a PIN number, change the mailing address, add a secondary card user and/or increase the account’s credit limit;

• Account maintainers – responsible for paying off accounts in order to avoid fraud detection and increase credit lines. The maintainer would use funds from one account to pay off another account to keep it viable and to steadily increase its credit limit, at which point all the funds from the account would be drained; or

• Account washers – responsible for obtaining as much pedigree information on an account holder as possible so that other account preparers could then use the information to access the victim accounts in order to take over the accounts.

A supplier would then sell the accounts to identity theft cell leaders, who would either pay the supplier a flat fee for an account or a percentage of the funds accessed with the account. Prior to accessing the accounts, the cell leaders would turn the accounts over to a “mill” run by a document manufacturer who would create the forged credit cards and forged identification cards. A document manufacturer was paid for each dummy credit card and identification card he made. Once a cell leader had the fraudulent documents they were distributed to the ring’s foot soldiers and shoppers who actually accessed the accounts.

Foot soldiers would access the accounts using ATMs and bank tellers. While using an ATM was less risky, there was a limit as to the amount of money that could be withdrawn at any specific time (usually a few hundred dollars). Equipped with a forged credit card and a forged identification card (such as a driver’s license), a foot soldier could withdraw up to $4,900 at a time at a bank. Shoppers were responsible for making purchases, usually high-end electronics with the stolen credit cards. The accounts the shoppers were given were those that had a high credit limit but no available cash advance. Shoppers were also responsible for finding “fences,” who would buy the electronics from them.

The District Attorney said that the investigation – dubbed “Operation Plastic Pipe Line” – leading to this week’s indictments and arrests began in September 2007 when police officers assigned to the Police Department’s Identity Theft Squad commenced a joint investigation with the District Attorney’s Economic Crimes Bureau into the large scale theft of Citibank credit cards and the subsequent use of the credit cards in Queens County and elsewhere. The investigation involved physical surveillance, intelligence gathering and court-authorized electronic eavesdropping on approximately one hundred different telephones and e- mail accounts in which thousands of conversations were intercepted – many of which required translation from Yoruba and Pidgin English to English. In the largest of the criminal enterprise indictments, it is alleged that Wole “Shola” Ogunwen was the leader of the Shola Enterprise and supplied the various accounts to his cell leaders – Ayanwale Ganiyu, Anthony O. Johnson, Kola Falidaya Molake, Adebayo A. Animashaun and Charles Femi Adoyele and his manager Jones Omoyemi Osinowo – who managed the local cells and managed the compromising of the supplied accounts. The accounts were allegedly prepared for usage by the defendants Idaya Molake, Hassan O. Anibaba, Abiodun A. Shotonwa, Anthony=2 0O. Johnson, Abimbola Lana and Samuel A. Adeoba. Steven Trevor Jackson was alleged to have been the forged document manufacturer who provided the “Shola” Enterprise with the forged identification and credit cards. John Doe (a.k.a. Abe), Ike Nwabuoke and Abidemi Olajide allegedly were the foot soldiers who went to the banks to make the withdrawals or to stores to make purchases with the compromised accounts. According to the charges, when purchases were made with these accounts, the items, usually expensive electronics, would then allegedly be fenced to Ronan Hassoun, who operates Five Brothers Audio and Video Electronics at 43 Graham Avenue in Brooklyn.

Finally, it is alleged that any funds obtained from the compromised accounts would then be paid up to Wole Ogunwen. District Attorney Brown said that the twenty-six defendants charged in the Shola Enterprise Corruption indictment are also variously charged – along with ten others – in a second 309-count identity theft indictment. In addition, three of the purported cell leaders named in the Shola indictments – Charles Femi Adoyele, Ayanwale Ganiyu and Abdul Razack Yusuf – are charged in separate indictments with operating two smaller identity theft and forged credit card operation – the Femi Criminal Enterprise and the Ganiyu/Razack Criminal Enterprise.

District Attorney Brown noted that, as part of the investigation, court-authorized search warrants were executed earlier this week at 17 locations and resulted in the recovery of forged credit cards, credit reports, machines used to stamp credit card account information onto cards and nearly $100,000 in cash.

Twenty-two of the defendants have been arraigned thus far before Queens Supreme Court Justice Richard L. Buchter.

The investigation was conducted by Detective Enrico Morriello of the New York City Police Department’s Identity Theft Squad under the supervision of Sergeant Barry Neiss and Lieutenant Ruperto Aguilar and the command of Deputy Inspector Gregory T. Antonsen, of the Organized Theft and Identity Theft Task Force, and the overall supervision of Deputy Chief Jeremiah Quinlan, Commander of the Special Investigations Division, and Chief George F. Brown of the Detectives Bureau.

Assistance was also provided by the NYPD’s Asset Forfeiture Unit – namely, Detective Raymond Phillips, Sergeant Stephen Scalza and Lieutenant Charles Scalzo – and its Fugitive Warrant Squad. Out of state assistance was provided by the Chicago Police Department, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Los Angeles County Sheriff Department, the Frederick (MD) Police Department and the Philadelphia Police Department.

Assisting also in the investigation were various members of the District Attorney’s Economic Crimes Bureau – namely, Assistant District Attorney Edward Suh, Paralegal Ericka Loperena, Investigative Auditor Phylesia A. Lang, Consumer Fraud Representative Michael Albanesi, Trial Prep Assistant Ivory Lai and Secretary Robin R. McCray.

Assistant District Atto rney Purvi Patel, of the Economic Crimes Bureau, is prosecuting the case under the supervision of Gregory C. Pavlides, Bureau Chief, and Christina Hanophy, Deputy Bureau Chief, and the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for Investigations Peter A. Crusco and Deputy Executive Assistant District Attorney Linda M. Cantoni.

District Attorney Brown expressed his appreciation to the United States Postal Inspection Service and the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles for their assistance and cooperation during the investigation.

It should be noted that an indictment is merely an accusation and that a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

I.SHOLA ENTERPRISE CORRUPTION INDICTMENT (369 counts) (17 DEFENDANTS)

The defendants are all charged with enterprise corruption and are variously charged with second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, third- and fourth-degree grand larceny, third-degree attempted grand larceny, fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, petit larceny, attempted petit larceny, and fifth-degree conspiracy. If convicted, they each face up to 25 years in prison.

* denotes defendant is presently being sought.
NAME/ADDRESS ALLEGED ROLE
1 * Wole Ogunwen, of 187-47 Ilion Avenue, St. Albans, Queens Supplier

2 Steven Trevor Jackson, 42, of 1271 Ocean Avenue in Brooklyn Forged Document Manufacturer

3 Jones Omoyemi Osinowo, 49, of 250 East 29th Street in Brooklyn Cell Manager

4 Adebayo A. Animashaun (age and address=2 0unavailable) Cell Manager

5 Ayanwale Ganiyu, 40, of 2020 East 41st Street in Brooklyn Cell Leader

6 Kola Falabake, 36, of 345 Montgomery Street in Brooklyn Cell Leader

7 Charles Femi Adoyele, 55, of 7 Trebor Road in Massapequa, LI Cell Leader

8 Anthony O. Johnson, 40, of 120 Beach 19th Street in Far Rockaway, Queens Cell Leader/Account Preparer

9 Idaya Molake, 43, of 341 10th Street in Brooklyn. Account Preparer

10 * Abiodun A. Shotonwa, 58, of 770 New York Avenue in Brooklyn Account Preparer

11 Hassan O. Anibaba, 32, of 950 Rutland Road in Brooklyn Account Preparer

12 Obimbola Lana, 45, of 1655 Undercliff Avenue in the Bronx. Account Preparer

13 Samuel A. Adeoba (age and address unavailable) Assistant Account Preparer

14 * John Doe (a/k/a Abe) (name, age and address unavailable) Foot Solider

15 Abidemi Olajide, 50, of 1396 Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn Foot Solider

16 * Ike Nwabuoke, 41, of Canada Foot Soldier
17 Ronan Hassoun, 38, of 2614 Quentin Road in Brooklyn Fence (for electronics)

II. SHOLA IDENTITY THEFT INDICTMENT (309 counts)
(27 DEFENDANTS)
Seventeen of the individuals are those named in the Shola Enterprise Corruption indictment. Below is information on the additional 10 defendants)

The defendants are variously charged with first-, second- and third-degree identity theft, first- and third-degree attempted identity theft, third-degree unlawful possession of personal identification, third- and fo urth-degree grand larceny, second- degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, fifth-degree conspiracy, petit larceny and attempted petit larceny. If convicted, they each face up to seven years in prison.

* indicates that the defendant is presently being sought.

NAME/ADDRESS ALLEGED ROLE
18 Denis Lenoid, 49, of 617 East 39th Street in Brooklyn Forged Document Manager

19 Roden Daniels Forged Document Manager
20 Fidelis Chukwuyem, 45, of 1037 East 99th Street in Brooklyn Forged Document Manager

21 Abdul Razack Yusuf, 48, of 380 Cozine Street in Brooklyn Cell Leader

22 Jide Salako, 35, of 518 West 41st Street in Los Angeles, California Cell Leader

23 Olanrewaju A. Shittu, 45, of 765 Lincoln Avenue in Brooklyn Cell Leader

24 Oladele Adeyemi, (age and address unavailable) Account Preparer

25 * Vivian Ike, 47, of 380 Cozine Street in Brooklyn Foot Soldier

26 Wole A. Lajide, 45, of Queens. Foot Soldier
27 Yetunde Peronel, 40, of 2501 Nostrand Avenue in Brooklyn Foot Soldier

III. FEMI ENTERPRISE CORRUPTION INDICTMENT (326 counts)

(11 DEFENDANTS)
The defendants are all charged with enterprise corruption and are variously charged with second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, third- and fourth-degree grand larceny, third- and fourth-degree attempted grand larceny, fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, petit larceny, attempted petit larceny, and fifth-degree conspirac y. If convicted, they each face up to 25 years in prison. * indicates that the defendant is presently being sought ** indicates that the defendant is also named in either the Shola Enterprise Corruption or/and Identity Theft Indictments.

NAME/ADDRESS ALLEGED ROLE
** Charles Femi Adoyele (named in Shola E.C. and I.D. Indictments) Cell Leader

** Jones Omoyemi Osinowo (named in Shola E.C. and I.D. Indictments) Cell Manager

** Adebayo A. Animashaun (named in Shola E.C. and I.D. Indictments) Supplier

28 Gaberial Goodwin, 41, of 259-51 147th Drive in Rosedale, Queens Supplier

29 * Ajibola Williams, 38, of Toronto, Canada Supplier 30 Olatunde Ashaya, 28, of 6333 North Ridge Avenue in Chicago, Illinois Supplier

** Steven Trevor Jackson (named in Shola E.C. and I.D. Indictments) Forged Document Manufacturer

** Abimbola Lana (named in Shola E.C. and I.D. Indictments) Account Preparer

31 John Adewale, 49, of 905 Rutland Road in Brooklyn Foot Soldier

** Wole A. Lajide (named in Shola I.D. Indictment) Foot Soldier

** Abidemi Olajide (named in Shola E.C. and I.D. Indictments) Foot Soldier

IV. FEMI IDENTITY THEFT INDICTMENT (297 counts)
(25 DEFENDANTS)
Eleven of the defendants are those named in the Femi Enterprise Corruption indictment above. Below is information on the additional 14 defendants.

The defendants are variously charged with first- second- and third-degree identity theft, first- and third-degree attempted identity theft, second- an d third-degree unlawful possession of personal identification, third- and fourth-degree grand larceny, third-degree attempted grand larceny, second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, fifth-degree conspiracy, petit larceny and attempted petit larceny. If convicted, they each face up to seven years in prison.

* indicates that the defendant is presently being sought

** indicates that the defendant is also named in either the Shola Enterprise Corruption or/and Identity Theft Indictments NAME/ADDRESS ALLEGED ROLE

32 Taiwo Adekanbi, 51, of 1035 Clarkson Avenue in Brooklyn Supplier

33 * Olayiwola Adams, 49, of 2425 Nostrand Avenue in Brooklyn Supplier

34 Jason Doyle (age and address unavailable) Supplier

35 Taye Adewale, 41, of Brooklyn Supplier
36 Israel Adeyomi, 41, of 6544 Belmar Street/Terrace in Philadelphia, PA. Supplier

** Kola Falabake (named in Shola E.C. and I.D. Indictments) Supplier

37 * Kazeem A. Atanda, 39, of 1438 Street Place in Brooklyn Supplier

38 Haffeez A. Odoffin, 31, of 8948 South Normal Avenue in Chicago, IL Supplier

39 * Tola Omotayo, 40, of 49 Crown Street in Brooklyn Supplier

40 Samuel A. Adeoba (age and address unavailable) Assistant Account Preparer

41 * Yele Kunle Akins (age and address unavailable) Foot Soldier

** Yetunde Peronel (named in Shola ID indictment) Foot Solider

42 Yussuf Amos Oladipo (age and address unavailable) works for=2 0others who used this cell to wash accounts

** Abiodun A. Shotonwa (named in Shola E.C. and I.D. Indictments) works for others who used this cell to wash accounts

V. GANIYU/RAZACK ENTERPRISE CORRUPTION INDICTMENT (92 counts)

(7 DEFENDANTS)
The defendants are all charged with enterprise corruption and are variously charged with second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, third- and fourth-degree grand larceny, fourth- and third-degree attempted grand larceny, fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, petit larceny, attempted petit larceny, and fifth-degree conspiracy. If convicted, they each face up to 25 years in prison.

** indicates that the defendant is also named in either the Shola Enterprise Corruption or/and Identity Theft Indictments NAME/ADDRESS ALLEGED ROLE

** Abdul Razack Yusuf (named in Shola I.D. Indictment) cell manager

** Ayanwale Ganiyu (named in Shola E.C. Indictment) cell manager

43 Richard Nwabuisi, 40, of 525 Ellrose Court, Frederick, MD supplier

44 Hakeem B. Olokodana (age and address unavailable) supplier

** Fidelis Chukwuyem (named in Shola I.D. Indictment) forged document manufacturer

** Denis Lenoid (named in Shola I.D. Indictment) forged document manufacturer

45 Abimbola Akinrindae, 51, of 188-02 64th Avenue in Queens account preparer

VI. GANIYU/RAZACK IDENTITY THEFT INDICTMENT (105 counts)

(9 DEFENDANTS)
Seven of the individuals are those named in the Ganiyu/Razack Enterprise Corruption indictment=2 0above. Below is information on the additional 2 defendants, who are also named in the Shola Identity Theft Indictment.

The defendants are variously charged with first- and second-degree identity theft, first- and third-degree attempted identity theft, third-degree unlawful possession of personal identification, third- and fourth-degree grand larceny, second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, fifth-degree conspiracy and petit larceny. If convicted, they each face up to seven years in prison.

** indicates that the defendant is also named in either the Shola Enterprise Corruption or/and Identity Theft Indictments

NAME/ADDRESS ALLEGED ROLE
** Roden Daniels (named in Shola I.D. Indictment) forged document manufacturer

** Vivian Ike (named in Shola I.D. Indictment) foot soldier

New York City officials said Thursday they broke up an international credit card and identity theft ring that caused more than $12 million in losses last year.

More than 35 people were indicted on enterprise corruption charges. So far, 22 suspects were a rraigned in state Supreme Court in Queens.

The ring was based in the New York area with roots in Nigeria, police and prosecutors said. Suspects were accused of shipping stolen or illegally obtained credit cards to buyers around the world.

The investigation began in 2007 after a report of a large-scale theft of Citibank credit cards.

The operation dubbed- ‘Operation Plastic Pipe Line‘- Busts Up Identity Theft Ring - Shola Enterprise Corruption Indictment Leads to Dozens of Arrests

As a NY criminal defense attorney and a former Manhattan prosecutor under Robert Morgenthau, I have defended or supervised numerous multi-million dollar investigations into Identity Theft, Credit Card Fraud, Forgery, Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument, Grand Larceny, Falsifying Business Records and related fraud schemes. In fact, prior to starting Crotty Saland, LLP, I was assigned to the elite Identity Theft Unit when it was created by DA Morgenthau in the Manhattan District20Attorney’s Office. In that capacity I received extensive training and hands on experience in the “trenches” and “front line” of Identity Theft and related crimes.

It comes as no surprise to me that another fraud scheme has reared its head and was ultimately broken up in Queens today. According to the Queens District Attorney’s Office, Operation Plastic Pipe Line began in 2007 and resulted in the multiple hundred count indictment for Enterprise Corruption and the arrest of dozens of people. It is alleged that this ring, led by Wole “Shola” Ogunwen, used multiple “cells” to defraud banks and steal the personal identification of thousands of people. In the last year alone, it is alleged that the financial loss exceeded twelve million dollars. To perpetrate the crime, these cells would use counterfeit credit cards, set up fake accounts, withdraw funds from banks and purchase products to be shipped overseas. With strong ties to Nigeria, it is further claimed that this ring operated on a global level.

As a former prosecutor and a criminal defense attorney experienced in these crimes, I know that this twenty one month Identity Theft investigation was likely supported by members of federal and state law enforcement who conducted surveillance, issued subpoenas, executed search warrants and worked relentlessly. I also know that these defendants need to re tain experienced criminal counsel or the situation they find themselves in will go from bad to worse. Culled from News Rescue

Obesity: Causes and control of excess body fat

Jeffrey M. Friedman¹

KELLY-MOONEY PHOTOGRAPHY/ CORBIS

How is obesity diagnosed?

Obesity is defined as excessive adiposity (body fat). Because the historical method for estimating adiposity — calculating a person’s buoyancy by measuring their body weight under water — is cumbersome, a surrogate measure known as the body mass index (BMI) is now routinely used. Although BMI (weight in kilograms per square of height in metres) is a convenient measure and useful for assessing the weight status of a population over time, it is often unreliable for assessing an individual’s status. This is because it does not distinguish between fat and muscle mass, and the use of height squared, which, like weight, is subject to demographic shifts, is entirely empirical. Recently developed methods for directly assessing body fat, such as air displacement to calculate density, are more reliable and so should replace BMI measurements.

How big a problem is obesity?

It is a global problem. Among Caucasians, the risk of obesity-associated medical complications first becomes evident from actuarial, or mortality, tables in people with a BMI of 25 (overweight) , and rises drastically in those with BMIs of 30 and above (obese). In the United States, around one-third of the population has a BMI above 30, and half have a BMI of more than 25. The aggregate economic cost of obesity in this one country is estimated to be in excess of US$60 billion per year, with a large proportion of it attributable to obesity-associated type 2 diabetes. The severity of obesity often increases dramatically when calories become freely available to populations. Hence, obesity is a growing problem in China and India, among other countries, and is likely to become a bigger problem as more nations get richer. In Asian populations, the risk of diabetes and other metabolic diseases often develops at lower BMIs than among Caucasians, amplifying the health consequences of obesity in Asia.

So is there an epidemic of obesity?

No: an epidemic typically denotes a disease that spreads from person to person and has a rapidly increasing incidence. Many trumpet a dramatic increase in the incidence of obesity, but whether this view is true depends on how one looks at the data. Variation in body weight is a continuous trait, whereas obesity is a dichotomous trait. Giving a fixed threshold to a continuous trait — for instance, that a BMI of 25 or above indicates overweight — means that a small shift in the trait’s mean value leads to a disproportionate increase in the number of people who exceed the threshold. For example, there were reports in the 1990s of a 33% increase in the incidence of obesity in the United States during the previous decade, strongly supporting the role of lifestyle. What remained unreported was an average weight gain of only 3–5 kilograms over the same decade in the whole population. So the secular trend towards obesity is less profound than is generally appreciated.

Are you saying that obesity is not a disease of lifestyle?

Lifestyle or environment is probably a necessary but insufficient factor in obesity. Going back to the earlier US example, although the vast majority of individuals there have unlimited access to calories, only half of the population is overweight or obese. A key question therefore is: when provided with unlimited calories, why do only some people consume more than others, becoming obese?

And the answer is?

Although many believe that food intake is primarily a voluntary, conscious behaviour, evidence suggests that the balance between energy intake and output is largely controlled by a powerful, unconscious biological system. It stands to reason that a biological system that maintains energy balance would be under evolutionary pressure, making it weigh up the relative risks and benefits of different amounts of fat. In a hunter-gatherer society, too little fat would put an individual at risk of starvation, whereas too much of it would increase the risk of both predation and serious disease. Thus, genetic variants that contribute to leanness or obesity could both be beneficial to a population, depending on the environmental conditions. This might explain why populations that have been historically undernourished often become the most obese when suddenly provided with unlimited calories.

What about consciously balancing food intake and energy expenditure?

On the basis of the laws of thermodynamics, body weight could be controlled in this way. But the biological system that balances adipose-tissue mass resists weight change in either direction, partly by regulating the unconscious drive to eat. In the short term, therefore, a motivated individual will lose weight by reducing food intake and/or increasing energy expenditure. Eventually, however, biological factors supervene and confer a powerful, unconscious impulse to eat more until the individual returns to his or her starting weight. This is analogous to consciously holding one’s breath; inevitably, the basic drive to breathe dominates the conscious motivation. Consider variations in weight among groups of individuals over time — say a year, during which an individual would consume roughly one million calories. Weight remains remarkably stable, far exceeding an individual’s conscious ability to monitor their food intake and energy expenditure. A challenging question is how neural circuits that underlie the basic drive to eat interact with those that represent the conscious wish to alter one’s weight.

What is the evidence for a biological basis for obesity?

Classically, a genetic contribution to a human trait is quantified by comparing the trait’s variation between identical and non-identical twins. Using this approach, the heritability of obesity — percentage of variation due to genetic factors — ranges between 70% and 80%. These values exceed those for most other traits that are commonly accepted to have a biological basis, including diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Indeed, the only trait with consistently higher heritability than obesity is height. Adoption studies also support the contribution of genes to obesity: adopted children’s weight more closely resembles that of their biological, rather than their adoptive, parents. Nonetheless, no study can completely attribute obesity to genes. Because no one becomes obese if they are starved, the environment — primarily, free access to calories — is probably a permissive factor that sets the stage for the genetically predisposed to become obese.

What genes have been implicated?

Several genes, when mutated, cause obesity in humans and animals. These genes are generally components of the system that regulates energy balance. For instance, the ob gene encodes leptin — a hormone made in adipose tissue that acts on many physiological systems, including brain centres that control food intake and energy expenditure. With an increase or decrease in body fat, leptin levels fluctuate accordingly, leading to a respective reduction or increase in food intake (Fig. 1). Mice with mutations in ob fail to produce leptin and show a threefold increase in weight and a fivefold increase in body fat compared with normal mice. Humans with mutations in this gene, or in the gene for the leptin receptor, can also become massively obese. The leptin receptor is located in the hypothalamus and elsewhere in the brain, as well as in some peripheral tissues. Injury to the hypothalamus can cause obesity, partly by destroying neurons that express the leptin receptor. A class of leptin-activated neurons in the hypothalamus express the neuropeptide precursor POMC, mutations in which, or in its receptor MC4, also cause obesity.

Figure 1: Leptin and the control of body fat.

With increased body weight, adipose tissue secretes higher levels of leptin. This hormone then travels to the brain, where it binds to leptin receptors in various regions, including the hypothalamus. The result is a sensation of satiety and so a decrease in food intake. Conversely a reduction in body weight lowers leptin levels and increases food intake. Thus, relative constancy of weight can be maintained.

High resolution image and legend (35K)

Do only single-gene mutations cause obesity?

No. Some 5–10% of morbid obesity (BMI of 40 or more) is due to defects in the above genes and in other genes that function in the brain circuits, including that encoding the neuropeptide BDNF. This is an unusually high frequency for the Mendelian inheritance of a complex trait. In the rest of the population, however, a combination of genes and their inter action with the environment is thought to cause weight variation. Several genes that affect weight have been identified through genome-wide association studies. One such gene is FTO, the function of which is unknown, but DNA-sequence variations in it can account for a 3–5-kilogram weight difference. The fraction of genes such as FTO that have been shown to contribute to obesity in the general population is relatively low. So it remains unclear whether such genes contribute to obesity through many different single-gene mutations or through potentially complex interactions involving several genes, each having small effects on their own (or a combination of both).

Is there a difference in the metabolism of lean and obese people?

Not if one measures only lean body mass. But when obese people lose weight, their energy expenditure is reduced disproportionately to their change in weight. These ‘reduced obese’ people use less energy than lean individuals of that weight who have not been obese. And to maintain their reduced weight, they must consume fewer calories than their initially lean counterparts. This disadvantage in itself undoubtedly contributes to the high rate of recidivism after dieting, especially as it occurs at a time when the basic drive to eat is activated by reduced leptin levels.

What hormones, other than leptin, are involved?

Whereas leptin maintains constant energy stores over long periods, there’s another system that maintains relatively constant levels of nutrients in the blood in the short term, for instance throughout the day. This system, which controls both hunger and satiety, consists of many blood-borne and neural signals. The blood-borne signals include metabolites — such as glucose, and possibly amino acids and fatty acids — and hormones of the digestive system, including the stomach hormone ghrelin and intestinal peptides such as GLP-1, peptide YY, cholecystokinin, bombesin and amylin. These short-term signals act on neurons in the brainstem and hypothalamus to regulate both food intake and the intervals between meals. The short- and long-term systems interact extensively.

So it seems that several tissues and organs regulate weight?

Indeed. Food intake and body weight are controlled by an intercalated feedback loop. Signals from numerous tissues that together form the short- and long-term systems — including adipose tissue and the gut — travel to integratory brain centres, where they are decoded. The neural pathways then control food intake and metabolism in several peripheral tissues (Fig. 2). Although substantial progress has been made in defining the neural pathways that control food intake, less is known about the circuits that regulate energy expenditure, and fat and glucose metabolism.

Figure 2: Feeding is a complex, motivational behaviour.

Several behavioural, genetic and metabolic signals regulate feeding through signals that travel from distinct peripheral tissues to integratory centres in the brain. After processing these signals, the brain modifies feeding and also sends appropriate commands to specific peripheral tissues to regulate metabolism.

High resolution image and legend (58K)

If predisposition to obesity is determined by our genes and metabolism, why diet or exercise?

Weight loss alleviates obesity-associated medical complications, with even modest losses of 5–7 kilograms having disproportionate benefits to health. Many people can achieve this amount of weight loss, partly because the potency of the biological factors that resist changes in weight is greatest after larger amounts have been lost. So my advice to obese individuals is the same as I would offer anyone: do what you can to improve your health. Eat a heart-healthy diet, begin a programme of physical activity, and try to lose as much weight as is required to improve your health, without feeling compelled to ‘normalize’ your weight.

Can gut microorganisms cause obesity?

Some studies have suggested a small but significant contribution of the gut microbiota, although the underlying mechanism is unknown. The contribution of such organisms, however, seems to be much smaller than that of the host genes. In animals, certain viruses can cause obesity by damaging the hypothalamus, but this effect has not been seen in humans.

Does the cause of obesity affect its severity?

Demonstrably so among those with specific obesity-related mutations. Patients with mutations in leptin or in the leptin receptor, for example, are more obese than those with mutations in POMC, MC4 or BDNF. Among obese people in the general population, there is probably a similar or even greater degree of variation. To identify such differences, respective genetic determinants in subgroups of obese people must be identified — an endeavour that is already under way.

What anti-obesity therapies are out there, and how effective are they?

One effective therapy is bariatric surgery to modify the anatomy of the gastrointestinal tract, thereby reducing food intake and/or absorption. Because all bariatric procedures can potentially cause serious morbidity and even death, this treatment is typically reserved for those with severe medical problems. Besides, even after surgery, most patients remain clinically obese (BMI more than 30), despite the marked reduction in their food intake. This fact highlights the biological difference between the morbidly obese and individuals of average weight. The reason for the effectiveness of bariatric surgery is unclear. Many believe that its benefits are primarily due to alterations in neural, metabolic and hormonal signals from the gastrointestinal tract to the brain, rather than a mechanical alteration that physically limits food intake. A major goal is to identify the specific signals that are altered by this procedure. The alternative procedure of liposuction is effective only in the short term, as the lost fat is eventually regained, probably because leptin levels are lowered after the removal of large amounts of fat, and so food intake increases. Leptin-replacement therapy in those deficient in this hormone is another approach that results in dramatic weight loss in animals and in the small number of humans with leptin mutations; to date, there are no known disadvantages of this treatment.

What are the hottest developments in obesity research?

For one, our increasing ability to identify specific neural pathways that control feeding and to assess how modulating the activity of such neurons affects feeding behaviour. For instance, manipulation with light, involving the light-activated ion channel known as channel rhodopsin, can be used to examine the effect of activating or inhibiting a neuron. Also, functional imaging has recently been used to map the human brain regions that control eating. Such studies have revealed leptin-mediated changes in neural circuits that control reward-associated behaviour, providing a link between neurobiology and psychology. As for research into anti-obesity therapy, emerging data show that leptin and amylin together produce a potent signal to induce substantial weight loss. The aim now is to evaluate the safety and long-term efficacy of this combined therapy.

And what are the most pertinent remaining questions?

A crucial objective is to understand the way in which diverse inputs lead to a single behavioural response — feeding. We do not know how this complex information is represented in the brain centres that control eating, or even where exactly these centres are. Answers to these questions may eventually reveal how and why, at a neurobiological level, the conscious desire to lose weight is so often dominated by the basic drive to eat. Another outstanding goal is to identify all of the genetic variants that contribute to differences in weight.

What might the future hold?

When there is no appreciable risk of starvation, obesity simply leads to disease, and so evolution should select against it. Indeed, on the Pacific island of Nauru, a profound increase in the incidence of diabetes after the introduction of a high-calorie diet was followed by a decrease, suggesting that there was evolutionary selection against diabetes when the incidence became very high. There is also evidence from the United States that the incidence of obesity may be reaching a plateau. I therefore anticipate that body weight will stabilize in the population over the coming decades.

So is taking action justified?

Regardless of future trends, developing effective and safe anti-obesity therapies is essential and feasible. I consider it less likely that drugs to normalize the weight of morbidly obese people will be developed any time soon; and anyway, whether such drugs would bring added health benefits is unclear. The focus should be on designing treatments that can stably maintain moderate weight loss, improving an individual’s health. With the growing realization that mainly biological factors contribute to obesity, it is hoped that this condition will be de-stigmatized, reducing the compulsion by obese individuals to achieve an (arbitrary) ideal, lean weight and instead motivating them to focus on improving their health. This outcome will best serve our larger interests and reflect better on all of us.

ACAMS FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT 2009

MAY 30^th - JUNE 02,2009 AT HALLUNDA

Rules of the tournament

1.     All players must from Cameroon either male or female doesn’t matter as long he or she is Cameroonian

2.     All teams must   be registered to participate latest on  MAY 15,2009. Registration is FREE

3.     A player cannot switch teams after playing for another team

4.     A team cannot borrow a player from another  due to lack of players

5.     One red or two yellow cards during match is symbol of dismissal for the current match and the next one if any

6.     Fighting during a match results in player being suspended for the rest of the tournament

7.     Insulting an official is not acceptable therefore player will be suspended for the next match

8.     The referee takes the final decision of a game and the decision is not reversible

9.     Each match is played within an hour, 30 min 1^st half and 30 min second half.

10. Any enquiries should be dealt with by the social organisers 

Each team have four matches to play inside a month; a victory gives 2 points per game and a draw gives 1 point. The results will be updated weekly on Acams website at the end of all matches. The two teams with the highest points play the final. Only the winner will receive ACAMS football trophy  2009.

 Register your team by contacting the social organisers  by e-mail or  phone

Lionel Donkeng 0736983996 lioneldonkeng@hotmail.com

The Interview That’ll Bag a Job

by Sarah E. Needleman
Tuesday, April 14, 2009

provided by

In recent weeks, recruiters for Consolidated Container Co. have seen job candidates arrive up to an hour early for interviews. Other candidates have alluded to financial hardships while in the hot seat, and one person even distributed bound copies of documents describing projects he completed for past employers.

These sorts of tactics aren’t exactly winners.

In today’s ultracompetitive job market, even getting an interview is a feat. Yet recruiters and hiring managers say many unemployed candidates blow the opportunity by appearing desperate or bitter about their situations — often without realizing it.

“People are becoming a lot more aggressive,” says Julie Loubaton, director of recruiting and talent management for Atlanta-based Consolidated Container. “They often wind up hurting themselves.”

At an interview, you want to stand out for the right reasons. To do so, you’ll need to leave your baggage and anxiety at the door. For starters, wait until 10 minutes before your scheduled interview time to announce yourself. Arriving any sooner “shows that you’re not respectful of the time the hiring manager put aside for you,” says Ms. Loubaton, adding that a candidate who arrived an hour early made workers uncomfortable. “Companies really don’t want someone camped out in their lobby.”

Signal confidence by offering a firm handshake, adds Wendy Alfus Rothman, president of Wenroth Consulting Inc., an executive coaching firm in New York. Focus your attention on the interviewer. Avoid looking around the room, tapping your fingers, or other nervous movements.

No matter how you’re feeling, keep your personal woes out of the interview process, asserts Ms. Alfus Rothman. Instead, always exude an upbeat attitude. For example, if you were laid off, instead of lamenting the situation, you might say the experience prompted you to reassess your skills, and that’s what led you here. “You want to demonstrate resilience in the face of unpredictable obstacles,” she says.

Meanwhile, show you’ve done your homework on the company by explaining how your background and track record relates to its current needs, adds Deborah Markus, founder of Columbus Advisors LLC, an executive-search firm in New York. This is particularly important if the firm is in a different industry than the one you worked in before. To stand out, you’ll need to look up more than just basics on company leadership and core businesses. You’ll also need to find out — and understand — how recent changes in the marketplace have affected the firm, its competitors and industry overall. Read recent company press releases, annual reports, media coverage and industry blogs, and consult with trusted members of your network. “Companies that may have been performing well just a few months ago might be in survival mode now,” says Ms. Markus. “You want to understand how [they're] positioned today.”

Also, be sure to show you’re a strong fit for the particular position you’re seeking, adds Kathy Marsico, senior vice president of human resources at PDI Inc., a Saddle River, N.J., provider of sales and marketing services for pharmaceutical companies. Offer examples of past accomplishments — not just responsibilities you’ve held — and describe how they’re relevant to the opportunity. “You must differentiate yourself like never before,” she says. “You need to customize yourself and make yourself memorable.”

Sherry R. Brickman, a partner at executive-search firm Martin Partners LLC, says a candidate recently impressed her with this sort of preparation. “He knew the company’s product line and what markets it was already in,” she says of the man, who was interviewing for an executive post at a midsize industrial manufacturer. “He clearly and effectively explained how he could cut costs, increase sales and expand market share based on what he’d done in his current job.” The candidate was hired.

Be careful not to go too far, though, in your quest to stand out. For example, it may be tempting to offer to work temporarily for free or to take a lesser salary than what a job pays. But experts say such bold moves often backfire on candidates. “Employers want value,” says Lee Miller, author of Get More Money on Your Next Job … In Any Economy. “They don’t want cheap.”

Your best bet is to wait until you’re extended a job offer before talking pay. “In a recession, employers are going to be very price sensitive,” says Mr. Miller. “The salary you ask for may impact their decision to move forward.” Come prepared having researched the average pay range for a position in case you’re pressured to name your price, he adds. You might say, for example, that money isn’t a primary concern for you and that you’re just looking for something fair, suggests Mr. Miller. You can try turning the tables by asking interviewers what the company has budgeted for the position.

In some cases, you may be looking just for a job to get you through so you might consider a less-than-perfect fit. But if you aren’t really excited about an opportunity, keep it to yourself, warns David Gaspin, director of human resources at 5W Public Relations in New York. “I’ve had times where people come in and it’s clear that if they really had their preference, they’d be doing something different,” he says. “You don’t want to put that out on the table. Nobody wants to hire someone who’s going to run for the door when times get better.”

After an interview, take caution with your follow-up. If you’re in the running for multiple jobs at once, make sure to address thank-yous to the right people, career experts advise. Also look closely for spelling and grammatical errors. In a competitive job market, employers have the luxury of choice, and even a minor faux pas can hurt your chances.

If all has gone well, don’t stalk the interviewer. Wait at least a week before checking on your candidacy, adds Jose Tamez, managing partner at Austin-Michael LP, an executive-search firm in Golden, Colo. Call recruiters only at their office, even if their business card lists a home or cell number. Leave a message if you get voicemail. These days, recruiters typically have caller ID and can tell if you’ve tried reaching them multiple times without leaving a voicemail. “There’s a fine line between enthusiasm and overenthusiasm,” he says.

Answering One of the Trickiest Interview Questions

by Kip Parent, Keirsey.com

“Tell me about yourself.”

This seems like such an innocuous question, but many novice job candidates have a hard time giving an answer. Even experienced interviewees can sound like canned ads for the jobs they are interviewing for. Employers ask such open-ended questions so they can see how candidates will present their skills, abilities, and ambitions.

Four Common Errors

First, here are common pitfalls to avoid:

1. “True Confessions”: Focus on positives. For example, if you’re going to talk about why you are interested in this position, convey your enthusiasm for the new opportunities — not that you are looking to get away from your current boss. Keep your interviewer’s view of you in a positive light.

2. “Home and Personal Life”: You are here to convey your skills as an employee. Disclosing personal information, such as how many children you have, won’t get the right message across.

3. “The Commercial”: Some people have read interviewing books or been trained by career counselors. They may give a 30-second commercial which shows their skills being tailored to the job needs. These often sound too canned and may be too limiting in showing the candidate’s abilities.

4. “I’ll Tell You Exactly What You Want to Hear”: Remember that the interview process is one of finding a mutual fit. You’ll avoid later problems by selling your true strengths and traits, not those you think the interviewer is looking for.

What Interviewers Want

Now that you know how not to answer the question, here is guidance on how to ace it.

The interviewer is looking to see how your skills and personality will fit into and help their organization. So a good starting place is to understand yourself and your personal strengths, and then be ready to tailor these traits as part of your answer. You can try the Keirsey Temperament Sorter (free online at www.keirsey.com) or the Myers Briggs Type Indicator to help understand your personal style.

Review your assessment and highlight areas that demonstrate skills you enjoy using. Write down verbs that show you in action and nouns that show qualities that you exhibit. Next, write down three adjectives that describe you. Then, think of a time when you solved a problem. Employers like to hire people who show initiative. Then organize these items into a 30-second “commercial.”

Four Sample Answers

Here are four examples of each of four basic personality types using this information when talking with various interviewers:

Gina, an aspiring accountant, wanted to emphasize her organizational abilities, dedication, and timeliness. She answered, “Last summer I worked as an intern for XYZ Accounting. I was known for being thorough and accurate in my work. We were in a big rush to make a deadline and I noticed that one page was missing from the master I was copying. I let my boss know. We found it, and were able to get the pages in order and the report printed in time for his meeting. I’m sure that my attention to detail and to high-quality work will be an advantage for your company.”

Brian was interviewing for a customer service position, and emphasized his versatility, fast response time, and energetic problem-solving abilities. He answered in this manner. “I’ve spent 10 years in customer service. People want solutions, and they want them quickly. I’m known as a guy who gets things done. One of our dealers had a customer interested in a luxury used sports car that needed a particular part. He’d had no luck through his usual channels and asked me for help. I made a few calls and the part was on its way to him from across the country in two hours. The sale went through. I’m really energized by solving problems for people.”

Interviewing for a Manager of Employee Relations position in a large company, Inez emphasized her ability to work in teams and to coach others to success. Her answer: “This department requires knowledge of legal liability and requirements for businesses. Both employees and managers are uncomfortable with employee relations issues. Education of all parties given with a large dose of tact is necessary to keep problems to a minimum. In my last position we were able to forestall a potential lawsuit. One thing I particularly pride myself on was being able to solve issues of employee/supervisor mismatch. Helping them understand their roles, responsibilities, differences in strengths and weaknesses solved many problems. At times it was necessary to reassign the employee to a different manager so they could continue to be of value to the company. I’d like to bring my knowledge to serve this company.”

Tony was applying for the Manager of Information Systems. He emphasized his ability to analyze systems and strategic issues and to create innovative and pragmatic solutions. He answered, “In general, people who are attracted to IT are self-educating problem solvers. But the rate of change and pressure on the staff can be so high that people get burned out. One of the innovations that I used at my last company was giving spot awards to individuals who volunteered to show new techniques to colleagues. Many people in IT concentrate on their own projects and don’t pass information along and the spot awards have encouraged a more communicative environment. I’m now looking for a new challenge in a larger sized company and believe I would be a good fit for your needs.”

In each case, the person answering the question gave a true picture of how he or she solved problems and brought value in their last situation. None portrayed themselves in a phony style. Each of them received a job offer.