U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced that ALEX SAUNDERS, age 25, a resident of Jamaica and former student athlete at Southern University in New Orleans, was sentenced today for his role in a conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.

According to court documents, in or before August 2013, and continuing through December 2015, SAUNDERS and others operated a scheme to contact elderly individuals and people with diminished capacity. The scheme involved contacting victims by telephone through Voice over Internet Protocol (“VoIP”) and informing them that they had won a lottery and needed to pay SAUNDERS and others monies by cash, check, wire, or other methods in order to claim their lottery winnings.

After receiving victims’ funds through United States mail, private mail carrier, or through an electronic transfer, SAUNDERS, and other co-conspirators known and unknown to the United States Attorney, with knowledge that the money they received was obtained through false and fraudulent pretenses, did knowingly and intentionally transfer the stolen money to bank accounts in Jamaica.

SAUNDERS was sentenced to 5 years probation and is ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $56,300.

U.S. Attorney Strasser praised the work of the United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General, United States Secret Service, and the United States Department of Homeland Security in investigating this matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sharan E. Lieberman was in charge of the prosecution.

U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced Wednesday, October 24, 2018 that ALEX SAUNDERS, age 26, a resident of Wylie, Texas, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.

According to the Bill of Information filed on August 3, 2018, in or before August 2013, and continuing through December 2015, SAUNDERS and others operated a scheme to contact elderly individuals and people with diminished capacity who would be susceptible to being scammed. The scheme involved contacting victims by telephone through Voice over Internet Protocol (“VoIP”) and informing them they had won a lottery and needed to pay SAUNDERS and others monies by cash, check, wire, and other methods in order to claim their lottery winnings.

After receiving victims’ funds through United States mail, private mail carrier, or through an electronic transfer, SAUNDERS, and other co-conspirators known and unknown to the United States Attorney, with knowledge that the money they received was obtained through false and fraudulent pretenses, did knowingly and intentionally transfer the stolen money to bank accounts in Jamaica.

Co-conspirator Andre Bowyer, charged in case 16-96 “J” in the Eastern District of Louisiana, directed co-conspirator Debra Krom, charged in case 18-30 “R” in the Eastern District of Louisiana, and SAUNDERS and others residing in the United States, to open bank accounts in the United States for the purpose of receiving money from elderly victims and transferring the proceeds into Bowyer’s account in Jamaica. It was part of the scheme and artifice to defraud that on certain dates between August 2013 and December 2015, the defendant, SAUNDERS, Krom and others, conspired with Bowyer to accomplish the unlawful scheme of fooling elderly victims into believing they had won a sweepstakes, causing the victims to send money via the United States Postal Service or by wire transfer to SAUNDERS, Krom or others. Immediately after receiving the funds in the mail from the victims, SAUNDERS, Krom, and others transferred the ill-gotten proceeds from their accounts to Bowyer’s account in Jamaica.

SAUNDERS is scheduled to be sentenced on January 23, 2019 before United States District Court Judge Susie Morgan. He faces a maximum of 5 years imprisonment, a fine of not more than $250,000, supervised release of up to 3 years, and a special assessment of $100.

U.S. Attorney Strasser commended special agents of the United States Secret Service, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the United States Department of Homeland Security Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sharan E. Lieberman.