Irwin Margolies
Red-Collar Crime and the “CBS Murders”
Abstract
This paper outlines the case of a typical white-collar criminal who transitioned into what is known as “red-collar” crime. Irwin Margolies, owner of Candor Diamond Corporation, perpetrated a fraud that would ultimately lead to the homicides of five individuals. This paper will compare white-collar and red-collar crime and discuss Margolies’ evolvement from one sector to the other. The detail of the fraud will be examined and decomposed as it relates to the principles of the fraud triangle. Red-collar crime goes beyond the fraud triangle as it involves violent acts by the perpetrator that are aimed at witnesses to conceal the fraud. These criminals possess certain psychopathic traits that differentiate them from other types of criminals. What started off as simple “get rich quick” schemes quickly elevated into a much larger scheme that spiraled out of control and led to tragedy.
Red-Collar Crime and the “CBS Murders”
In many cases, perpetrators of what is considered “white-collar” crime can easily be motivated to commit acts of violence depending on the pressures of fraud concealment. This movement into the violent realm of crime creates what are known as “red-collar” criminals. Irwin Margolies, a capitalist in the diamond industry of New York, began his career as a non-violent perpetrator of fraud. Ultimately, however, Margolies ended up in a murder for hire scheme that resulted in the deaths of two of his employees as well as three CBS employees. This case would come to be known as “The CBS Murders”.
White-Collar vs. Red-Collar
Most fraud cases are perpetrated by what are known as white-collar criminals. In 1939, the term “white-collar crime” was coined by Edwin Sutherland, a criminologist and sociologist. Sutherland defined white-collar crime as crime perpetrated by individuals of high social status within their field of work. Alternatively, in 1981, the United States Justice Department
Abstract
This paper outlines the case of a typical white-collar criminal who transitioned into what is known as “red-collar” crime. Irwin Margolies, owner of Candor Diamond Corporation, perpetrated a fraud that would ultimately lead to the homicides of five individuals. This paper will compare white-collar and red-collar crime and discuss Margolies’ evolvement from one sector to the other. The detail of the fraud will be examined and decomposed as it relates to the principles of the fraud triangle. Red-collar crime goes beyond the fraud triangle as it involves violent acts by the perpetrator that are aimed at witnesses to conceal the fraud. These criminals possess certain psychopathic traits that differentiate them from other types of criminals. What started off as simple “get rich quick” schemes quickly elevated into a much larger scheme that spiraled out of control and led to tragedy.
Red-Collar Crime and the “CBS Murders”
In many cases, perpetrators of what is considered “white-collar” crime can easily be motivated to commit acts of violence depending on the pressures of fraud concealment. This movement into the violent realm of crime creates what are known as “red-collar” criminals. Irwin Margolies, a capitalist in the diamond industry of New York, began his career as a non-violent perpetrator of fraud. Ultimately, however, Margolies ended up in a murder for hire scheme that resulted in the deaths of two of his employees as well as three CBS employees. This case would come to be known as “The CBS Murders”.
White-Collar vs. Red-Collar
Most fraud cases are perpetrated by what are known as white-collar criminals. In 1939, the term “white-collar crime” was coined by Edwin Sutherland, a criminologist and sociologist. Sutherland defined white-collar crime as crime perpetrated by individuals of high social status within their field of work. Alternatively, in 1981, the United States Justice Department
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