Mississippi couple indicted for sweepstakes scam, sending money to Ja

A Mississippi couple has been indicted in the United States on allegations of scamming persons and sending a portion of the funds to co-conspirators in Jamaica.

The US Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania has announced that Troy Smith, 27, and Michelle Greenwood, 36, were indicted by a federal grand jury in December 2021 on 18 counts of conspiracy, wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering conspiracy for receiving funds from sweepstakes scam victims.

The indictment was unsealed by Court order on February 2.

According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, the indictment alleges that between August 2016 and June 2018, the defendants and other unindicted co-conspirators received consumer fraud-induced MoneyGram, Western Union, and Ria money transfers, bank wires and deposits, cheques, and cash from victims across the US totalling more than $300,000.

It is being alleged that their victims included a 51-year-old widow residing in Columbia County, in the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

Scheme

Allegations are that in October 2016, an unidentified fraudster using a fictitious name and posing as an official of a sweepstakes organisation falsely told the woman that she had won a multi-million-dollar cash prize and automobile.

The fraudster also allegedly told her that she had to prepay taxes, and later various other fees and expenses, in order to receive her cash prize and automobile.

She was reportedly directed to send money in the form of money transfers, bank wires, and cash mailings payable to the defendants in their own names and in various aliases.

It is further alleged that she was told that the defendants were also officials of the sweepstakes organisation.

Payments

According to law enforcement, She ended up sending about US$123,000 in the form of Western Union, MoneyGram, and Ria money transfers to the defendants and co-conspirators, making about $90,000 in cash deposits into their accounts, depositing about $14,000 in the form of bank wire transfers, and mailing about $2,000 in cash and money orders.

It is being alleged that Smith and Greenwood received these funds from the woman and others and then sent a portion of these fraud-induced funds to various co-conspirators in Jamaica.

From October 2016 until about June 2018, the defendants allegedly sent around 57 Western Union money transfers totalling about US$50,000 to different recipients in Jamaica.

It is being alleged that Smith and Greenwood commonly received money using certain names, including their own real names, and then sent money to Jamaica under different names and in smaller dollar increments.

If convicted, the maximum penalty under federal law for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud is 20 years' imprisonment.

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