The United States District Court for the District of South Carolina unsealed an indictment on Mar. 30 charging five individuals with involvement in a fraud and money laundering scheme that allegedly caused losses of at least $3.5 million.
According to the indictment, Xavier Gordon, Warner Gordon, Kevin Milton Simpson, Tashagae Narcia Leslie, and Kemar Christopher Edwards are accused of deceiving victims by convincing them they had won sweepstakes cash prizes. The defendants allegedly told victims they needed to pay taxes and fees before receiving their winnings, prompting victims to send money by mail or wire transfer.
After collecting these funds, the defendants are alleged to have laundered the proceeds and sent a portion to individuals in Jamaica. Authorities say more than 100 people were victimized by this scheme, with many being elderly.
Each defendant faces charges including conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud as well as conspiracy to commit money laundering. Some face additional counts of mail or wire fraud. If convicted, each could face up to 30 years’ imprisonment, fines up to $500,000, and three years of supervised release.
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Whit Sowards is prosecuting the case.
Officials remind that all charges listed in the indictment are accusations; all defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
