Three individuals charged with defrauding seniors through false sweepstakes scam

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — United States Attorney Zachary Cunha announced three individuals from Georgia were charged Wednesday for allegedly deceiving senior citizens in Rhode Island and other states out of at least one million dollars through false lottery winnings. 

36-year-old Patrick Dallas, 28-year-old Stacey Robinson, and 32-year-old Owen Demoy Byfield are charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

The three suspects allegedly created a fake sweepstakes scam and laundered money through controlled bank accounts.

The senior citizens were tricked into believing they won up to millions of dollars in a fake “Publishers Clearing House” sweepstakes, and were told they had to provide personal identification information to redeem their prize, as well as pay an upfront fee or tax.

The fee, which varied from money, gift cards, or expensive items were sent to addresses managed by the suspects.

One 77-year-old Rhode Island victim was scammed out of thousands of dollars after being told he had won $17,500,000 after he was supposedly randomly entered into a raffle.

The victim sent $100,000 through a wire transfer, and shipped almost $43,000 of Rolex watches after the false PCH worker told him to do so.

He was further instructed to send four $30,000 checks through the mail, but was stopped when a FedEx employee said he was likely being scammed and recommended reporting it to police.

 The Warwick Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, and the United States Postal Inspection Service determine that elderly victims in multiple states have fallen victim to the scam and sent large funds to bank accounts controlled by members of the conspiracy.

More than 100,000 senior citizens reported getting scammed in 2023, losing over $3.4 billion to criminals, according to the FBI.

For individuals who believe they have fallen victim to financial fraud, they are advised to call the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833 FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311).

For more information about the Department’s elder justice efforts, visit the Department’s Elder Justice website.