Posted on 04/23/2013 3:11:47 PM PDT by nickcarraway
A businessman who made millions selling fake bomb detectors is facing jail.
James McCormick made an estimated £50million from sales of three models of bomb detectors to Iraq, Belgium and even the United Nations for use in Lebanon.
But the Advanced Selection Equipment devices had no scientific basis and in reality were based on a £13 American novelty golf ball finder, a court heard.
McCormick, 56, shook his head at the Old Bailey as he was found guilty of three counts of fraud.
Some of the detectors sold for £27,000 each and McCormick is thought to have made around £37million from sales to Iraq alone.
They were marketed to military, police forces and governments around the world using glossy brochures and the internet.
Fantastic claims were made that the detectors could find substances from planes, under water, under ground and through walls, said prosecutor Richard Whittam QC.
The Advanced Detection Equipment (ADE) sold by Advanced Tactical Security & Communications (Picture: SWNS) But, the barrister said, the devices did not work and he knew they did not work.
He had them manufactured so that they could be sold and despite the fact they did not work, people bought them for a handsome but unwarranted profit.
McCormick, a former policeman and salesman, told the court he sold his detectors to police in Kenya, the prison service in Hong Kong, the army in Egypt and border control in Thailand.
He said one of them had been used to check a hotel in Romania before the visit of an American president in the 90s.
He said: I never had any negative results from customers.
Detective superintendent Nigel Rock described McCormick as a conman.
He said: We have heard evidence from many, many experts, scientists, leaders in their field, who have said this was a fraud. A sham.
That device has been used and is still being used on checkpoints. People using that device believe it works. It does not.
He is due to be sentenced on May 2.
Why do they need something that detects fake bombs?
Reminds me of the E-Cat. Every few years you send it in for servicing, where they reload the unicorn cannister with fresh kitty litter and shredded newspaper. Warranty void if seal broken.
Polish mine detector? Oops - ethnic humor no longer acceptable.
they’re great if you have lost your golf balls , I bet Obama has some
Easy way to check if they work
Put the CEO in a minefield with one of his products and watch him make his way out...
To me, this says as much about the sloppy acceptance testing used by his customers as it does about him. At some point, a savvy customer should have discovered that the devices didn’t perform as claimed.
Sold these to Boston PD?
What testing? You bribe the right people and you get the contract. I have no doubt that's how he sold each and every one of these.
Good point. His co-conspirators at the agencies who purchased those devices should be prosecuted as well.
What does the seal do? Give fish to the cat?
This is pretty harsh treatment for someone trying to sell a con. I think Al Gore would agree with me.
People laugh at long, convoluted product “specifications” all the time. Some learn not to laugh, when they find about these kinds of fraud cases.
I do wonder how many low and mid level buyers were bribed to buy his products.Sometime for a box of donuts.
Powdered or glazed?
He’s probably lucky. Imagine the charges and lawsuits, if a bomb that had been cleared by these machines went off.
If I'm betting my butt on something to detect a bomb, I'm darned sure going to make sure that it works as advertised. I guess that if it's not your own butt on the line, as in the case of these buyers, you don't need to be all that picky.
Does anyone think this would work for Zero and his worthless minions?
...primarily because customers who had a negative experience are DEAD.
Poles are more or less white, so have at ‘em.
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