Elder Justice

Husband And Wife Plead Guilty to Social Security Fraud Scheme OAKLAND – Erick and Kimberly Dominguez pleaded guilty in federal court today to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with their scheme to defraud the Social Security Administration (SSA), announced United States Attorney David L. Anderson and SSA Office of Inspector General Special Agent in Charge Robb Stickley. The plea was received by the Honorable Haywood S. Gilliam Jr., U.S. District Judge. According to the defendants’ plea agreements, Kimberly Dominguez, 37, of Vallejo, Calif., was an employee at the SSA’s Oakland Teleservice Center. From September 2015 until October 2019, ... Read more

Corporate Insider Convicted of Conspiring with Others at Long Island Boiler Room to Pump and Dump Stock on Unsuspecting Elderly Investors Illegal Stock Promotion and Manipulation Scheme Cost Victims Million of Dollars A federal jury in Central Islip returned a guilty verdict on all counts this afternoon against Michael Watts, a former registered broker, for his role in a conspiracy to promote and manipulate the price of shares in Hydrocarb Energy Corp. (Hydrocarb) and other companies. Specifically, Watts was convicted of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, securities fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, money laundering conspiracy and money laundering. The ... Read more

Five Fraudsters Indicted for Million Dollar Scheme Targeting Thousands of U.S. Servicemembers and Veterans Foreign-Based Fraudsters Stole Millions of Dollars from Mostly Elderly and Disabled Veterans WASHINGTON – A 14-count indictment has been unsealed today in San Antonio, Texas, charging five individuals with coordinating an identify-theft and fraud scheme targeting servicemembers and veterans. The charged defendants, who were based both in the Philippines and the United States, are alleged to have used the stolen personal identifying information (PII) of thousands of military members to access Department of Defense and Veterans Affairs benefits sites and steal millions of dollars. The defendants, ... Read more

Southbury Attorney Sentenced to Prison for Defrauding Elderly Clients John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ROBERT J. BARRY, 78, of Woodbury, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford to 21 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, the first six months of which Barry must serve in home confinement, for stealing from his elderly client trust accounts. According to court documents and statements made in court, Barry was a partner in the law firm of Sturges and Mathes, located in Southbury. The firm specialized in ... Read more

Woman Sentenced to Seven Years in Federal Prison After Stealing from an Elderly Widow and Her Deceased Son, a Former Navy SEAL Stole Nearly $200,000, Including an Inheritance the Navy SEAL Received After He Reportedly Drowned in Puerto Rico A woman who stole the identities of an elderly woman and her deceased son, a former Navy SEAL, in order to withdraw nearly $200,000 from their bank accounts, was sentenced December 18, 2018, to seven years in federal prison. Robin Ann Bertelli, age 61, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a May 17, 2018 guilty plea to one ... Read more

9 Defendants Charged in Chicago in International Investigation Targeting “Romance Scams” and “Mystery Shopper” Schemes CHICAGO — Seven Chicago-area residents are among nine individuals arrested in the United States and Nigeria as part of an international investigation into online “romance scams” and “mystery shopper” schemes. During the Chicago-based investigation, dubbed “Operation Gold Phish,” law enforcement identified a variety of cyber-enabled fraud schemes allegedly carried out by conspirators in the U.S. and Nigeria. One of the alleged schemes involved “romance scams,” in which a conspirator builds trust with a victim through a purported online romance before convincing the victim to send ... Read more

Chicago Woman Sentenced to Nearly 4 Years for Multi-Million Dollar Fraud Involving Bogus Event Ticket Business CHICAGO — A Chicago woman has been sentenced to nearly four years in federal prison for operating a multi-million dollar fraud scheme that duped investors into believing she could earn profits on the secondary market for concert and sports tickets. TRACY MONTI fraudulently obtained more than $5 million from investors by misrepresenting that she could purchase tickets for sporting events and concerts from primary market sources at face value or at a discount through purported connections in the event business and then re-sell the ... Read more

District Court Enters Temporary Restraining Order Blocking Three Elder Fraud Schemes From Sending Fraudulent Letters A federal court in Central Islip, New York entered a temporary injunction today against individuals and corporations allegedly responsible for operating three international mail fraud schemes, the Department of Justice announced. These cases are part of the Department of Justice’s Elder Justice Initiative. In a complaint filed today, the United States alleged that the 15 defendants mailed, or facilitated the mailing of, fraudulent solicitations related to three mail fraud schemes that primarily victimized the elderly or vulnerable. The solicitations purported to be personalized notices informing ... Read more

Message from U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons for World Elder Abuse Awareness Day June 15, 2018, is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day.  Communities around the world are focusing on the abuse, fraud, neglect, and schemes perpetrated against older individuals.  As South Dakota’s United States Attorney, I take very seriously the role of our office in protecting older South Dakotans. In 2017, Congress passed the Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act.  Among other things, this law enabled the Attorney General of the United States to allocate resources to federal investigations and prosecutions of crimes against older Americans. In the District of South ... Read more

Claims Specialist at Social Security Administration Arrested on Fraud and Identity Theft Charges for Allegedly Misappropriating at Least $680,000 in Fraudulent Benefits CHICAGO — A claims specialist for the U.S. Social Security Administration has been indicted on federal fraud and identity theft charges for allegedly approving and pocketing at least $680,000 in fraudulent benefits. ANNE AROSTE, also known as “Ann Aroste,” worked as a claims specialist at the SSA’s field office in Aurora. Aroste was responsible for processing applications for Social Security benefits via the agency’s electronic records system. According to the indictment, Aroste created fraudulent applications for benefits on ... Read more