If you’ve gotten an offer in the mail claiming that you will receive good luck in return for a donation, you might have been the victim of an international mail fraud scheme.
The promises sound innocent enough, and many of those who received these letters might have believed they were merely paying psychics and astrologers for their services – spending a little cash to receive a little luck. But the U. S. Department of Justice would disagree. Fraud prevention teams became aware of the individuals and operations involved when complaints were filed and have taken legal action to shut things down.
Tricksters Offer Psychic Help; Elderly Victims Don’t See Results
A permanent injunction was filed in late 2021 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida accusing three French residents and two companies of participating in an international mail fraud scheme. That action halts the fraudulent operations of Robert Lhez, Mireille Dayer and Julie Poulleau, who acted in conjunction with two corporations – one in Delaware and one in Switzerland. None of those covered under the injunction can engage in any mass mailing or “prize promotion” in the U. S., according to news releases by the Justice Department.
An investigation into the complaints revealed that these defendants mailed out hundreds of thousands of solicitations, in which they would claim to represent psychics and astrologers who would deliver lottery winnings and other windfalls if only the recipient would send along cash – usually, around $40-50 – to motivate them. The donation letters were full of false claims and misleading information, and of those who sent money back, a large number were elderly people. Judging from the numbers of complaints the Justice Department received, most of those who donated never saw the promised jackpots and other benefits.
The injunction alleges that those accused defrauded hundreds of thousands of victims, who sent along money totaling millions of dollars. The full extent of the fraud isn’t fully known, but over one 15-month period from 2017 to 2018, for example, more than 34,000 payments were sent in, netting the swindlers $1.4 million.
Question ‘Too Good to Be True’
Speaking for the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton asserted that those who perpetrate such schemes will be held accountable. “The Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch will continue to investigate and bring cases to stop mass mailing fraud when it arises.”
In a statement, Acting U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida urged the public to be skeptical of promotions that seem too good to be true, and come forward with complaints, if they suspect they’ve been defrauded. “Beyond financial losses, predatory fraud schemes like this one lead to immense emotional suffering for victims,” Gonzalez said.
The defendants in this scam have been known to Postal Inspectors for years, according to additional information offered by Inspector in Charge Eric Shen, who works with a criminal investigations force of the post office. According to Shen, the individuals stayed ahead of the law by altering the specifics of their scheme. Expressing satisfaction with the permanent injunctions, Shen added, “the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and its law enforcement partners will peel back the layers until we find the individuals behind these schemes and hold them accountable.”
Under the terms of the October 8 action, the defendants will be permanently barred from sending any mass mailings to the U. S., including any solicitations involving psychic services with promises of prizes or prosperity in return for donations. They will also be barred from participating in any similar schemes, either by consulting or working for others. They are also prohibited from selling or leasing lists of past or prospective American victims.
The order grants the post office the authority to hold any mail in the future that would send money to the defendants, and wherever possible, return the money to the senders.
That may be the best return of the promised good luck that those individuals can expect.
