Federal prosecutors say a 31-year-old Jamaican citizen is now going through severe costs in Connecticut over what they describe as a yearslong sweepstakes rip-off that drained tens of millions of {dollars} from older People.
Court docket paperwork unsealed in New Haven lay out allegations that Richard Murray and a number of other others operated the scheme starting as early as 2018. Investigators say victims had been contacted by telephone and instructed they’d received a Publishers Clearing Home sweepstakes. Nonetheless, authorities allege that earlier than gathering any supposed prize cash, the winners first needed to ship in charges and taxes.
In response to prosecutors, these calls had been solely the start.
After the preliminary conversations, the group allegedly mailed solid paperwork to their targets. The papers had been designed to seem like official successful notifications from Publishers Clearing Home, together with tax kinds that appeared to return from the Inside Income Service. Investigators say the paperwork was meant to make the story plausible and reassure victims that the funds had been legit.
Most of the individuals focused had been aged. Prosecutors say victims mailed money, checks, or cash orders to addresses in Connecticut and different states. In some instances, people despatched a number of funds after being instructed further charges had been required.
The indictment describes what authorities name a community of “cash mules.” These had been individuals who acquired funds from victims after which transferred the cash to Murray and others, in line with prosecutors. A few of these people had been allegedly misled themselves and believed they had been collaborating in lawful enterprise transactions.
Federal officers additionally declare the group recruited others to open financial institution accounts underneath totally different names to maneuver the cash. Investigators say a few of these accounts had been tied to ATM playing cards utilized in Jamaica, the place money withdrawals had been made out of funds generated by the scheme.
A federal grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment on April 16, 2024. Murray is charged with one rely of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, three counts of mail fraud, and one rely of conspiracy to commit cash laundering. Every cost carries a most potential sentence of 20 years in jail.
Authorities arrested Murray in Hampton, Georgia, on January 22, 2026. He later appeared earlier than U.S. Justice of the Peace Choose Robert M. Spector in New Haven on Wednesday (February 11), the place he pleaded not responsible to all costs. He has remained in custody since his arrest.
Prosecutors stress that an indictment is barely an allegation. Murray is presumed harmless until and till he’s confirmed responsible in court docket.
Anybody who believes they might have been focused is inspired to report the incident to federal authorities.
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