For most Texans and Floridians the 2017 hurricane season is nothing more than a distant memory.
For one Polk City family it turned out to be a nightmare. When contractors or subcontractors come to your residence or place of business representing FEMA, you expect a professional to be appraising your property and have your best interest at heart. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case once this story of murder and robbery unfolded.
Mr. William Reiss of Polk City had an inspection done by Mr. Jackson from Mobile Alabama after Hurricane Irma back in 2017.
Mr. Reiss had an extensive gun collection and Jackson reportedly came back several weeks later to purchase a few guns from him. After doing so Jackson returned to Mobile and recruited two counterparts, they all determined they would return to Mr. Reiss’ house to steal his gun collection. However, when the trio arrived at Mr. Reiss’ residence, Jackson decided to kill him and steal his collection along with other valuables.
During the investigation Polk County Sheriff’s Office detectives discovered a Vanguard Emergency Management Contractor name badge for Jackson. See the Fox13 News article.
The issue here – at the end of the attached article – is that Vanguard made no comments about the incident. Vanguard’s website now addresses the background screening process in extensive detail.
Here are some additional information from the Federal Trade Commission on how to protect yourself and your business from impersonators.
Whatever your business, be sure to background screen all your applicants before hiring them!