In March 2016, the FBI’s Buffalo Field Office received a complaint regarding a fraudulent Internet purchase scam. According to information in the complaint, the subject sold concert tickets via the Internet, asked the victims to wire money for the tickets via Western Union, and then failed to provide the tickets. An FBI intelligence analyst (IA) searched intelligence databases and discovered reports naming the subject in similar activities involving MoneyGram and RushCard financial institutions. The IA conducted background research on the subject, including a search of the FBI’s National Data Exchange (N-DEx) System. The N-DEx System search produced a report filed in December 2015 by the Sumner County (Tennessee) Sheriff’s Department (SCSD) that contained an offense code for postal larceny and a reference code for this specific incident.

As a result of the findings, an FBI special agent contacted the SCSD, which confirmed that there was an outstanding warrant for the subject for theft under $500 issued by the Hendersonville (Tennessee) Police Department. The SCSD also provided victim information related to the theft that matched a victim named in another report for similar conduct by the subject. The Buffalo Field Office would have had no indication that an arrest warrant had been issued for the subject without the information obtained from the N‑DEx System. In addition, the Buffalo Field Office identified a second victim in Tennessee who had reportedly been scammed by the same subject.

For more information about how N-DEx can help your law enforcement agency, please contact the program office at ndex@leo.gov or call (304) 625-0555.