By 7:00 a.m. I was in the data forensic office at the federal building, placing the forged Power of Attorney on Chandra Sterling’s desk. Our lead digital forensic specialist pushed her wire-rimmed glasses up her nose, scanned the document, and started typing at blistering speed.

“The notary here is a ghost, Claudia.” She tapped a nail against her monitor. “Her license expired over two years ago. The seal is a fabrication.”

“Draft the expedited paperwork for a federal subpoena. I need the full unredacted account history for his savings and retirement accounts. Follow the money.”

Within the hour, the bank’s compliance department returned the records in a secured file. We scanned the line items side by side in the glow of the monitors.

The movement was erratic at first, then formed an obvious pattern. A lump sum of $250,000, withdrawn in a single wire transfer three days ago.

“Look here.” Chandra highlighted a cascade of offshore transfers. “It didn’t go to a personal checking account. It moved through a shell LLC under a generic holding name, then fractured into a dozen smaller increments to stay under federal reporting triggers.