Tag: U.S. Postal Inspection Service
How To Avoid Lottery, Prize Scams: You Didn’t Enter, But You 'Won'?
A surprise message says you hit the jackpot, but there’s a catch: you must pay a fee or hand over personal details to claim it.
That’s the hallmark of a lottery or prize scam—designed to separate you from your money and identity.
These schemes often arrive by email, text, phone, or mail and lean on pressure tactics to force quick decisions.
Scammers frequently demand “taxes,” “processing,” or “shipping” upfront, or ask for sensitive data to “verify” you.
Legitimate lotteries do not require payment to release a prize, and you should never be asked for your Social Security…
'Our Pesticides Kill COVID:' Cherry Hill Biotech Founder, Philly Firm Hit With Federal Charges
A New Jersey man and the Philadelphia-based biotech company he founded are accused of selling pesticides with false claims that they could kill the virus that causes COVID-19, federal prosecutors said.
James Young, 46, of Cherry Hill — founder of ViaClean Technologies, LLC — was charged by indictment with conspiring to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, mail fraud, and violations of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), according to U.S. Attorney David Metcalf.
Sean Storrie, 59, of Philadelphia, was also charged with FIFRA violations, prosecutors said.
The indictm…
Waterbury Woman ‘Thunder’ Led Stolen Check Scheme Targeting Local Businesses: Feds
A Waterbury woman known as “Thunder” is accused of leading a stolen check and bank fraud scheme that targeted small businesses across Connecticut, federal officials said.
Michelle Freeman, 37, of Waterbury, along with Leshanda Long, 43, of Hamden, and Omar Eaddy, 40, of Bridgeport, have been indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Each faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.
According to prosecutors, Freeman, Long, and Eaddy carried out a scheme that involved stealing checks from mailboxes, altering them, and using “check runners” to cash them at banks and check-cashing…
$1M Asylum Scheme, Oxford Paralegal Indicted After Posing As Lawyer, FBI Seeks Victims
A Pennsylvania paralegal is accused of posing as an immigration lawyer in a $1 million asylum fraud scheme, federal prosecutors announced on Thursday, July 31.
Fatima DeMaria, 65, of Lincoln University, was indicted on eight counts of asylum fraud and eight counts of mail fraud after allegedly charging immigrants thousands of dollars for fake legal services, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
DeMaria, owner of Immigration Matters Legal Services in Oxford, allegedly promised undocumented immigrants work permits and legal protection despite not b…
Trio Ran $500K Luxury Car ID Theft Ring On LI, Dragged Cop While Fleeing: DOJ
Three men are accused of running a sophisticated identity theft ring that used stolen personal information of unsuspecting victims to buy luxury cars—some of which were stored on Long Island.
The defendants—Tiansi Gong, 26, of Manhattan; Kevin McCarthy, 31, of Selden; and Matthew Hibner, 36, of Huntington Station—are accused of conspiring to obtain high-end vehicles using stolen identities, then stashing the cars at a lot on Zorn Avenue in Yaphank.
Investigators determined that the scheme involved more than $500,000 in fraudulent vehicle loans tied to at least 35 identity theft victims, acc…
Franklin Lakes Wife Indicted In Notorious House-Flipper Husband's Federal Case
A New Jersey woman has been indicted in a federal case tied to her husband, a notorious house flipper, after she destroyed her cell phone as law enforcement tried to seize it during a fraud investigation, officials announced.
Jennifer Iturralde Pina, 43, of Franklin Lakes, was indicted on a charge of destruction of records in a federal investigation, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba announced Thursday, July 3.
The case stems from a federal investigation involving her husband, Cesar Humberto Pina, 45 — a real estate influencer better known as “Flipping NJ.”
Pina gained national attention through r…
Ex-Library Staffer From Hawthorne Admits Embezzling $3.2M From Couple Who Trusted Him, Feds Say
A Passaic County man and former tech administrator at a Bergen County library admitted to embezzling more than $3.2 million from a local couple who had hired him as a part-time personal assistant, federal prosecutors said.
Charles Gallo, 34, of Hawthorne, pleaded guilty in Newark federal court to one count of wire fraud, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba said Friday, May 2.
Gallo began working for the victims in 2018, helping manage their bills, banking, emails, and tech issues, court documents say. From March 2022 to March 2023, Gallo used his access to steal millions, including making ATM withdra…
Nation’s Largest Covid-19 Tax Credit Scheme Uncovered In Central Islip: Usdoj
Federal authorities announced on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, that seven people have been charged in a $600 million COVID-19 tax credit fraud scheme, the largest of its kind in U.S. history, uncovered in Central Islip, New York.
Keith Williams, Jamari Lewis, Morais Dicks, Janine Davis, Tiffany Williams, James Hames Jr., and Ewendra Mathurin, all current or former New York residents, are accused of filing over 8,000 fraudulent tax returns between November 2021 and June 2023. The defendants allegedly exploited the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) and paid sick and family leave credit (SFLC), feder…
$1M Federal Insider Trading Scheme: Larchmont Man Shared Private Info, Feds Say
A Westchester man and Long Island resident are among four people charged in connection with their alleged involvement in an insider trading scheme that netted over $1 million in profits, federal officials announced.
David Cooper, age 38, of the Westchester village of Larchmont, and John Lowe, age 61, of the Suffolk County hamlet of Sayville, were arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and securities fraud, the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York announced on Wednesday, Jan. 15.
Three other men—Randy Grewal, 54, of Anthem, Arizona, and Richar…
Trio Stole $100K+ In Business Checks From Wall Township Mailboxes, Police Say
Two men and a woman from North Jersey were accused of stealing more than $100,000 in business checks from Wall Township mailboxes, authorities said.
James Miller, 37, of Passaic; Kaleik Easton, 29, of Bloomfield; and Asia Harrell, 31, also from Bloomfield; were arrested, the Wall Township Police Department said in a news release.
Investigators said businesses were defrauded out of more than $100,000 after checks were taken from their mailboxes. Police executed two search warrants at the suspects' homes and they were taken into custody on Wednesday, Sept. 19.
Detectives …
Suspicious White Powder Sent To Election Offices Across Country — Including CT
A package with a suspicious white substance was intercepted at a United States Post Office in Connecticut earlier this week and could be part of a much larger scheme to disrupt or scare election workers ahead of election day, authorities said.
The package was found at a West Hartford post office on Monday, Sept. 16, the Connecticut Secretary of State said in a news release. No one was injured, but the contents were sent to a lab for testing.
Election offices in New York, Tennessee, Wyoming, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas, Indiana, Massachusetts, …
Feds: Trio Who Trafficked Ghost Guns Through Hudson, Passaic Sentenced To 4-To-6 Years
𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: Three members of a ghost gun trafficking network in Passaic and Hudson counties must spend from four to six years in federal prison before they'll be eligible for release, authorities announced.
Ex-con Corey Jenkins Jr., 31, and Savion Clyburn, 21, both of Paterson, and Richard Mullane, 27, of Bayonne, were among the members of the D.I.Y. network that operated largely in both cities, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said.
They were targeted in an investigation in which the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) worked closely with vari…
Member Of 'Hit List' Burglary Crew That Targeted Asian Homeowners In NJ, NY, PA Sentenced
𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: A member of a burglary ring that specifically targeted Asian-American small business owners in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware was sentenced to a plea-bargained 33 months in federal prison.
James Hurt, 48, of New York, and other members of the second-story crew worked from what the FBI called a hit list of dozens of homes in the four states based on “stereotype and opportunity" from Dec. 2, 2016, to March 20, 2019.
The burglars often got into homes through unsecured upper-floor windows before seeking out cash, jewelry and guns, the FBI said
In one instance, th…
Thieves Snatch Teaneck Residents' Checks From Postal Boxes, Forge Them For $240,218
A criminal crew stole checks mailed by Teaneck residents from postal boxes, then changed the amounts to more than 100 times the totals and cashed them, federal authorities said.
Noah Aranzamendi, 25, of Brooklyn, and his associates used universal (or "arrow") keys to open the outdoor mailboxes, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said.
They then shared images via an encrypted message app of the checks, which were then altered, the U.S. attorney said.
The four checks, which were initially written out for a total of $1,896.59, ended up fetching a whopping $240,218, he said.
The crew sold the …
Member Of Burglary Crew That Targeted Asian Homeowners On 'Hit List' In NJ, NY, PA, Sentenced
𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: A confessed member of a burglary ring that targeted Asian-American small business owners in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison.
Kevin Jackson, 57, of Rahway, NJ, must serve a little over two years before he'll be eligible for release because there's no parole in the federal prison system.
Jackson was part of a second-story crew that the FBI said worked from a hit list of dozens of homes in the four states based on “stereotype and opportunity" from Dec. 2, 2016, to March 20, 2019.
One of Jackson's associates told detectives t…
Cyberfootsies: Ex-NJ Couple, Money Washer Confess $4.5M Online Romance Scam
UPDATE: A former New Jersey couple and a local businesswoman have admitted scamming more than 100 lonely hearts out of $4.5 million in an elaborate online romance scheme, federal authorities charged.
Martins Inalegwu, 35, took a deal from the government, pleading guilty in U.S. District Court in Camden on Monday, March 25 to conducting an unlawful money-transmitting business and evading taxes for four straight years.
Inalegwu's wife, Steincy Mathieu, 27, had already pleaded guilty to tax evasion last November.
Oluwaseyi Fatolu, 56, of Springfield, followed her by admitting this past …
Chesco Identity Thief Stole Victims' Mail, Opened Credit Cards In Their Names: DA
A Spring City man is charged with more than 500 counts in two separate cases of alleged forgery, identity theft, and related offenses, according to the Chester County District Attorney's Office.
Joshua Hartmann, 41, stole mail from residents in Schuylkill Township, Phoenixville, Malvern, Tredyffrin, Upper Providence, and Lower Providence for months, prosecutors claim.
Authorities say he used the victims' information to change their addresses on file with government agencies, then stole their identities and opened credit cards in their names.
Tredyffrin…
