Forbes: Spokane is Scam Capital of America

By Kellyn Brown, 5-13-09

Forbes has declared Spokane, Wash., the “scam capital of America.” I point this out not only because it's the closest “big” city to Kalispell, but also because it’s where I spent most of my childhood. From Forbes’ William P. Barrett:

There's the diploma mill that sold 10,000 phony college degrees to buyers in 131 countries. The $31 million parking-garage bond hustle that snared fund firms Vanguard, Nuveen and Smith Barney. And the many questionable enterprises around the continent that turn for legal and accounting services to firms in the heart of the Pacific Northwest's Inland Empire.

Welcome to Spokane, Wash., a metropolitan object lesson in what can befall the unwary when rugged individualism is revered and consumers unsuspecting.

I was interning at a weekly newspaper in Spokane during the parking garage debacle and vaguely remember hearing about the diploma mill. But scam capital? Really?

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