A Jamaican man was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison for lottery scamming after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, four counts of wire fraud, and three counts of mail fraud.
According to the US Department of Justice, 27-year-old Romario Mark Anthony Murray of Montego Bay, Jamaica, was sentenced on Friday, July 22.
The convictions stemmed from activities designed to defraud elderly victims of their money through false promises of sweepstakes prizes. United States Attorney Jason R. Coody for the Northern District of Florida announced the sentence.
“Americans are fed up with the constant barrage of scams that maliciously target the elderly and other vulnerable citizens,” said Attorney Coody.
“Given our large elder population, Florida experiences far too many instances of fraud against unsuspecting, vulnerable seniors. With the assistance of our dedicated law enforcement partners, we are committed to investigating and vigorously prosecuting those who seek to steal the hard-earned savings of our senior citizens.”
Court documents reflect that between 2017 and 2019, Murray and others conspired together to receive wire transfers and packages mailed by victims, totaling $608,801.99.
The conspirators then took a percentage of the funds for themselves before forwarding the remainder to Murray in Jamaica. Nineteen victims were identified through banking records and law enforcement analysis.
Murray’s prison sentence will be followed by three years of supervised release.
“This sentencing should send a clear message to criminals defrauding American residents,” said Juan A. Vargas, Acting Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Miami Division.
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service will relentlessly pursue them, regardless of international borders, and bring them to justice.”
Since the late 1990s, telemarketers in Jamaica have been engaging in a scam in which they contact victims in the United States and falsely claim they have won large sweepstakes prizes.
Victims, who are primarily elderly, are induced to send cash or cash equivalents in order to release their supposed prizes. The victims’ funds are often sent via wire transfers and the United States Postal Service packages.
In recent years, the prevalence of lottery scamming and fraud has grown, particularly among Jamaican youth.
The Ministry of National Security estimated that proceeds from lottery scamming, money laundering, cybercrimes, and drug and firearms trafficking have resulted in the annual flow of at least US$1 billion into Jamaica. In 2021, 59 million Americans lost close to $30 billion collectively due to phone scams.
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