The financial crisis and mortgage fraud: The unforeseen circumstances of the war on terrorism and the financial war on terrorism, a critical reflection

Ryder, Nicholas

Abstract

The article illustrates how the instigation of the ‘War on Terrorism’ and the ‘Financial War on Terrorism’ had a catastrophic impact on the ability of the Federal Bureau of Investigation to tackle mortgage fraud that was associated with the 2007/2008 financial crisis. Initially, the article identifies and demonstrates how President George Bush decided to prioritise tackling terrorism and the financing of terrorism following the al Qaeda terrorist attacks on September 11 2001. This was illustrated by the creation of the Department of Homeland Security in 2002, the extension of the remit of the Department of Justice and the redistribution of specialist white collar crime agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation to enforce terrorist related legislation. The second part of the article illustrates the association between the financial crisis, subprime mortgages and mortgage fraud. The article then moves on to critically review the impact of the alteration in policy towards mortgage fraud that was introduced by President Barak Obama in 2009. Therefore, questioning the effectiveness of the policies adopted by President George Bush.

• Online Publication Date: Dec 7, 2017
• Publication Date: 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 8, 2019
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed
• Pages: 317-348
• Series Title: Palgrave Studies in Risk, Crime and Society
• Book Title: White Collar Crime and Risk: Financial Crime, Corruption and the Financial Crisis
• ISBN: 9781137473837
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-47384-4_12
• Keywords: financial crime, financial war on terrorism and mortgage fraud
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/878780
• Publisher URL: http://www.palgrave.com/gb/book/9781137473837