Mid South ACFE Conference 2025 Schedule

HomeMid South ACFE Conference 2025 Schedule

Schedule:
*Subject to change.

8:00 - 8:30

Welcome & Opening Comments:

8:30 - 8:45

Presentation of Awards

Chapter CFE of the Year
Chapter Investigator of the Year
Chapter Law Enforcement Unit Excellence Award
Presidents Award

8:45 - 9:35

Session. #1:
Wayne Ervin, CFE CAMS
Subject: Investment Fraud: Your Loss, Their High Returns

Bio:
Wayne Ervin is currently serving as the Senior Director, Head of Financial Crime and Chief AML Compliance Officer at TradeStation and is a Certified Fraud Examiner and a Certified Anit-Money Laundering Specialist. Wayne previously held positions such as Vice President of Fraud Services and Investigations at First Horizon Bank and BSA/AML Investigations Team Lead at Morgan Keegan & Company. He is a retired Special Agent from the Air Force Office of Special Investigations and holds a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Education.

9:55 - 10:45

Session. #2:
Danny Sample, Special Agent
Subject: Project iGuardian and Dangerous Online Environments

Project iGuardian is a public service outreach effort to share information about the dangers of online environments, how to stay safe online, and how to report abuse and suspicious activity.

In addition, those involved with the Project iGuardian team are here to help kids stay safe online by providing safety tips, a number to call, and a website with links to more information and resources.

Project iGuardian helps kids, teens and parents be smarter about online safety and stay safe from online sexual predators.

While the focus is on kids, the suggestions are relevant to everyone, if you are online, you can be at risk.

11:05 - 12:20

Session. #3:
Randy Bechtel & Dan Butler
Subject: Tennessee Sports Wagering Council

An overview of the Tennessee Sports Wagering Council’s mission and responsibilities as it pertains to licensing and regulating online sportsbooks in the State of Tennessee. Additionally, it will address the types of fraud affecting the industry and how we address those fraud trends.

Bios:
Randy Bechtel - Director of Investigations and Sports Integrity
Prior to joining the Tennessee Sports Wagering Council, Randy spent 24+ years with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) leading and managing national security and criminal investigations at the field and headquarters level. He is a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point and is an U.S. Army veteran. Randy also holds a Master of Business Administration from Mercer University Stetson-Hatcher School of Business and is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) with the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (2010).

Dan Butler - Senior Investigative Analyst
Prior to joining the Tennessee Sports Wagering Council, Dan worked at UBS as the Manager of Financial Crime Prevention Quality Assurance. He holds an undergraduate degree in Criminal Justice from High Point University and a Master of Public Administration from the University of South Carolina. Dan is a certified member of the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (ACAMS). Dan is also a member of the United States Coast Guard Reserves and currently serves as a Command Representative at USCG Station Wrightsville Beach, NC.

12:20 - 1:25

Lunch

Session. #4 (Ethics):
Two Panel Sessions
Subject: Ethics

We will be having two separate panels that will discuss ethics and answer questions. The first panel will consist of law enforcement personnel, and the second panel will consist of private industry personnel.

Each panel will be one hour each of CPE and you will still receive two ethics CPE hours.

Session #4.1
Ethics Panel with Law Enforcement Representatives
1:25 - 2:15

Brock Sain
Special Agent In Charge

Brock Sain is the Special Agent in Charge of the Support Services Unit in the Administrative Services Division. Agent Sain completed his Bachelor of Science in Forensic Chemistry at the University of Mississippi in 2009. In 2010, he began working for the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation in the Forensic Services Division. During his time in Forensics, he worked in Drug Identification and Firearms and Tool Mark Identification. He also served as a Team Lead for the Violent Crime Response Team, a Firearms Instructor, Emergency Vehicle Operator Instructor, and Use of Force Simulator regional operator. In 2020, Agent Sain began working in the Medicaid Fraud Control Division. He completed numerous workshops and training courses from the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units, National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association, and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE). He is currently an associate member of the ACFE. In 2025, he was promoted to Special Agent in Charge in Administrative Services. In this role, he oversees Internal Affairs for the Bureau and manages Fleet Services, Procurement, and Warehouse. He also serves as the facilities safety coordinator.

Jeff Cox
Chief of Police, Bartlett PD

Chief Jeff Cox is a native of Bartlett and is a graduate of Bartlett High School, class of 1985. He began his career with the Bartlett Police Department in January 1989 when he was sworn in as a Police Officer. Chief Cox was promoted to Detective in April of 1993 and in April 2003 Chief Cox was promoted to Lieutenant. He was appointed to Chief Inspector by Mayor A. Keith McDonald in January 2008, where he commanded the Patrol Division. Chief Cox served as Assistant Chief from January 2019 until being sworn in as the Ninth Police Chief in the police department’s history in January 2020.

Chief Cox, during his career, has spent time working in the patrol division. He spent most of his time in the Bartlett Narcotics Unit as not only a case officer, but also a K-9 Handler. He was a member of the DEA drug task force from 1996 till 2001 before being transferred to the Investigative Services Division, where he worked until being promoted to Lieutenant. Chief Cox has had many roles in the department while progressing through the ranks of the police department. Chief Cox was Officer of the Year in 1994.

Chief Cox holds a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Management from Crichton College and a Master’s Degree in Christian Studies from Union University.

Chief Cox is a graduate of the 246th session of the FBI National Academy.

Faith Hill
Captain, Shelby County Sheriff's Office

Captain Faith Hill serves as the Executive Officer for the Detective Division for the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, where she oversees investigations of major crimes, homicides, cold cases, sex crimes, child abuse, robberies, and thefts. Captain Hill started in 1989 as a Reserve for the Sheriff’s Office and served for over 8 years and then went full time in 1997 and is still going strong after 28+ years.

Throughout her career, Captain Hill has served in many different divisions in a multitude of roles-some of the areas are Patrol, Narcotics, Courts, Reserves, Training Academy, Traffic, and Schools. The ability to work in different areas has led to expertise in crime prevention and leadership. Captain Hill has completed many different classes such as the National Forensic Academy (AKA-The Body Farm), FBI-LEEDA, and the TBI Leadership Academy. Captain Hill is dedicated to public service and is committed to protecting her community, upholding the highest standards of professionalism and integrity and fostering collaboration across agencies around the Mid-South to strengthen public safety and justice.

Shannon Beasley
Sheriff, Tipton County

Session #4.2
Ethics Panel with Private Industry Representatives
2:20 - 3:10

Thomas W. Terry, CFE, CPA

Specialty Audit Advisor

FedEx Internal Audit

Thomas W. Terry (Tom) graduated from the University of Memphis with a bachelor's degree in business administration. In July of 1991, he joined the United States Postal Inspection Service as a Postal Inspector.

As a Postal Inspector, Tom conducted:

§ Financial audits and investigations for the Postal Service. Audits and investigations resulted in recovery of millions of dollars in revenue and identification of employees responsible for embezzlement and misconduct.

§ Criminal investigations involving allegations of Money Laundering, Mail Fraud, Insurance Fraud and other federal crimes covered under Title 18 of the United States Code. Investigations resulted in:

-Identification of individuals responsible for criminal activity.

-Indictment, arrest, and prosecution of individuals by the U.S. Attorney's Office.

-Recovery of fraudulently obtained funds.

Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE)

Obtained the CFE designation from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners in 2010.

Notable Case

Joseph Caronna investigation was featured on American Greed. Reference CNBC

(American Greed - Episode 81 - "Murder in Memphis") which aired in March of 2014.

After retiring from the Postal Inspection Service, Tom founded and operated a private investigation company from 2013 to 2017. He provided investigative services to the Department of Justice, and other parties. During this time, he obtained the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) designation from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Tom joined FedEx Internal Audit as a Specialty Audit Advisor on the Audit Special Projects and Investigations Team in July 2017. He has conducted audits, special projects and investigations. Tom was awarded the prestigious FedEx 5 Star Award in August 2019.

Tom is currently enrolled in the Master of Accountancy program at Christian Brothers University and is expected to graduate in Spring of 2026.

Melanie Roman, CPA, CIA, CFE
Fraud & Compliance Manager
International Paper

Melanie Roman joined International Paper in 2014 and is currently the Audit Manager for the Fraud & Compliance team within Corporate Audit. She has more than 20 years of professional audit and accounting experience. Her background encompasses multiple disciplines of audit (internal and external). During her tenure with IP, Melanie has conducted numerous impactful domestic and international investigations of a highly sensitive and/or complex nature involving fraud, accounting irregularities, theft, and/or policy violations.

Prior to joining IP, Melanie was an Audit Project Manager with the Internal Audit function for ServiceMaster, in Memphis TN. In her roles there, she led intricate audit assignments in areas such as SOX, financial, IT, compliance, and operational audit projects; assisted in the investigation of HelpLine cases; and led a team of senior and staff auditors. Additionally, Melanie worked for a Regional CPA Firm as Audit Staff Accountant with duties that included all aspects of an external audit engagement.

Melanie earned a Bachelor of Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting from the University of Memphis and Master’s in Accounting from DeVry University. She has been a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) since 2007, a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) since 2008, and a Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) since 2015.

George Mullins Jr, CFE, CICA, AIC
Retired

George has his Bachelors in Criminal Justice from the University of Memphis and MBA from the University of Alabama.

George recently retired from FedEx as an internal auditor, and has also worked for Kellogg, HealthSouth, State Farm and the Internal Revenue Service.

Peter Sarfas, CFE, CFCI
Sr AML Investigator
TradeStation Securities Inc

Peter is a Sr AML Investogator with TradeStation Securities Inc. Previous to this, Peter was a Risk Investigator with First Horizon Bank (formerly First Tennessee Bank).

Peter gained his CFE in 2015 and his Certified Financial Crimes Investigator (CFCI) with the International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators in 2020.

3:25 - 4:15

Session. #5:
Josh Davis
Subject: Utility Theft

Utility Theft and Fraud Investigations is ever involving. The direct loss to utility companies around the world is a multi-billion-dollar industry. The discussion will include what MLGW sees occurring within its service territory and the history of how the Corporate Investigations and Revenue Protection evolved.

The presentation will show how utility theft investigations are conducted and examples of what it looks like. How we combat fraud and identity theft with the help of our local Law Enforcement Agencies. Employee theft cases we see and what are the consequences for it. What Tennessee State Statutes are associated with it? Lost and Stolen property investigations and how MLGW is handling those.

Bio:

Josh Davis began his career at Memphis Light Gas and Water Division (MLGW) on July 12, 1999. He was hired in the Customer Service Department as a Customer Service Technician, level I, and reported to the Meter Reading Department. He was responsible for making sure his monthly routes were read, and other employees were read correctly.

On April 6, 2010, he was promoted to the Corporate Investigations and Revenue Protection as an Investigator level I. He was responsible for conducting utility theft investigations and reporting the findings to the VP of the Customer Care Division. As an Investigator, he has testified in criminal and civil court trails involving utility theft against MLGW.

In October of 2010, he received his BSBA, from the University of Phoenix, Memphis Campus. In 2013, he was promoted to the Investigator Level II position. He began conducting Credit/Debit card fraud investigations and hot check writing fraud investigations. He became a member of the MLGW three-million-dollar club in 2015. He was promoted to Lead Investigator in April 2015. He added utility scam investigations, employee misconduct, lost and stolen property, and theft of equipment and property Investigations to his daily responsibilities.

He was promoted to Supervisor of Corporate Investigations and Revenue Protection in May of 2017 and served in this position until November of 2021. He now serves as the Manager of Corporate Investigations and Revenue Protection, which reports to the Director of Corporate Security at MLGW.

Josh served as the President of the Memphis Criminal Investigators Association from 2012-2013.

He is currently a member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), American Society for Industrial Security (ASIS International), Memphis Area Fraud Investigators Association (MAFIA). He also serves as the Director of Safety and Security at East Side Baptist Church in Bartlett, Tn.

4:15 - 4:30

Closing Comments