PENSACOLA, Fla. (WTXL) — A man from the country of Jamaica was sentenced to serve time in a United States federal prison.
According to an announcement by United States Attorney Jason R. Coody for the Northern District of Florida Friday, Romario Mark Anthony Murray, age 27, of Montego Bay, Saint James Parish in Jamaica was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison.
Murray previously pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, four counts of wire fraud and three counts of mail fraud.
After spending more than four years in prison, Murray will be subject to three years of supervised release.
The news release notes that Murray’s actions were designed to defraud elderly victims of money through false promises of sweepstakes prizes.
Between 2017 and 2019, the attorney’s office says Murray and others conspired together to receive wire transfers and packages mailed by victims.
The attorney’s office notes the scheme obtained $608,801.99 from victims.
Those involved in the fraud then took a percentage of the funds for themselves and sent the balance to Murray in Jamaica.
A total of 19 victims were confirmed during law enforcement’s investigation.
The attorney's office notes that telemarketing fraud from Jamaica targeting elderly citizens in the United States has been a known issue since the late 1990s.
