Individual Convicted of Conspiracy and Money Laundering for Role in Costa Rican Telemarketing Scheme

August 5, 2015 – An Ohio man was convicted yesterday after a two-day jury trial in the Western District of North Carolina for his role in a Costa Rican telemarketing scheme.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Jill Westmoreland Rose of the Western District of North Carolina made the announcement.

Paul Ronald Toth Jr., 40, of Wintersville, Ohio, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and six counts of international money-laundering concealment. Sentencing before U.S. District Judge Robert J. Conrad Jr. of the Western District of North Carolina will be scheduled at a later date.

According to the evidence presented at trial, Toth was involved in a telemarketing scheme in which his co-conspirators contacted U.S. residents from call centers in Costa Rica, falsely informing them that they had won substantial cash prizes in “sweepstakes.” To claim the cash prizes, the victims – many of whom were elderly – were instructed to send a purported “refundable insurance fee.”

The trial evidence showed that, between approximately November 2009 and November 2010, Toth was a United States-based “smasher” who facilitated the laundering of funds received from the elderly victims. Specifically, according to the evidence presented at trial, Toth and others he recruited and supervised received over $300,000 from victims and, using various individuals as senders and recipients to conceal the fraudulent nature of the transactions, wired over $200,000 of those funds to co-conspirators in Costa Rica. The evidence further demonstrated that Toth kept the remainder as his profit.

This case is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service, Federal Trade Commission and Department of Homeland Security. The case is being prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Patrick Donley and Trial Attorneys William Bowne and Anna Kaminska of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Previous Cargill Inaugurated CBS Service Operation in Costa Rica
Next California Woman Sentenced to Over 10 Years for Her Role in Defrauding Elderly Through Offshore Sweepstakes Scheme

You might also like

News: Schemes

Fraudulent Telemarketer Sentenced to 50 Years in Prison, Co-Conspirators Also Sentenced for Roles in Fake Sweepstakes Scheme

September 23, 2009 – Four owners of Costa Rica-based telemarketing call centers, an employee and a Texas-based list broker have been sentenced for their roles in defrauding thousands of U.S.

News: Schemes

British Citizen Arrested in Connection with Costa Rica-based Business Opportunity Fraud Ventures

WASHINGTON – July 31, 2009 – A British citizen charged in connection with the operation of a series of fraudulent business opportunities was arrested Thursday evening in Miami following his

News: Schemes

Seven Charged in Telemarketing Sweepstakes Scheme that Victimized People in the United States, Including the Elderly

October 2, 2018 – Seven U.S. citizens were charged in an indictment unsealed today for their roles in a Costa Rica-based telemarketing scheme that allegedly defrauded victims in the United