A former
taxi driver from Wisconsin has been convicted for his part in the Jamaican
lottery scam.
O’Brain
Junior Lynch from Milwaukee preyed on the hopes of people on social security
benefits by contacting them and saying they had won the Jamaican lottery.
Before the funds could be released though, they would be required to pay the
taxes and fees. One victim even managed to scrape together a staggering
$100,000 to pay the fictional fees, but instead of received a big payout he
discovered it was all a big rip-off and lost nearly everything he owned.
"He knew what he was doing," U.S. Attorney, James Santelle, said about Lynch. "He
purposely set out to defraud people. Taking their social security benefits,
taking their life savings, promising things he plainly did not have."
Social
security investigator, Bill Cotter, stated, "There are people doing this
all around the world; preying on beneficiaries in the United States, whether
they’re making phone calls or doing it by email."
Cotter also
pointed out genuine organization do not contact people out of the blue and
request personal information, such dates of birth and social security numbers.
Lynch
refused to talk to the press, but his attorney stated that although his client realizes
he had profited from vulnerable victims, he only wanted to make a little extra
money to support his family.
Lynch has
been sentenced to five years in federal prison and will have to pay back over
$185,000 to his victims.
