CONNECTICUT LOTTERY SCAM RING BUSTED

Wednesday September 19,2012 : CONNECTICUT LOTTERY SCAM RING BUSTED
 
It's not just Jamaicans that perpetrate lottery scams on elderly US residents
 
Fraudulent lottery scams on elderly US residents usually emanate from Jamaica, where a massive crackdown has been taking place this year, but this week a US-based ring was busted, Fox News reports.
 
Police in Stamford, Fairfield County in Connecticut report that seven local people have been arrested in connection with a scam that preyed on elderly victims around the United States.
 
The defendants are accused of sending their ill-gotten gains out of the country to accomplices in Costa Rica.
 
Investigators told the local media that they have so far established more than $165,000 in losses. Thirty-one victims from across the U.S. have been identified, most of them above the age of 80.
 
The modus operandi used was neither innovative nor sophisticated – victims were contacted by telephone or a letter and told they had won a prize. In order to collect the supposed winnings, they were directed to send money to pay taxes or fees.
 
A total of nine arrest warrants were issued, including one for the suspected ringleader. Police say that person is at large and may be in Costa Rica.