Thousands of UK victims of an international junk mail scam will get compensated with money seized from the crooks.
Kevin Brandes and accomplices sent millions of personalised letters targeting the vulnerable with offers of "guaranteed" cash prizes.
Some victims were repeatedly tricked into sending upfront fees before they'd receive the prizes, which never materialised.
In a landmark investigation, Trading Standards officers in the UK worked with the US Federal Trade Commission to track down the fraudsters to Kansas.
It is estimated that the gang sent seven million letters to the UK over four years using official sounding names such as Award Notification Commission and International Awards Payment Center.
More than 3,500 UK victims will now share compensation of £530,000.
“Today marks a major milestone in an investigation that started four years ago," said Louise Baxter, Head of the National Trading Standards Scams Team.
"Falling victim to a scam can have a huge emotional impact on individuals so I’m delighted that we can use the proceeds of these crimes to provide compensation to thousands of UK victims with the help of our network of trading standards officers.
“Collaborating across borders with the Federal Trade Commission has proven highly effective. We are confident that this approach of obtaining proceeds of crimes from international fraudsters to compensate UK victims could be replicated in the future.”
Some of the scam mail involved supposed "games of skill". The first mail shots contained puzzles that were deliberately easy to solve, such as finding three numbers in a grid of just nine numbers that add up to ten.
Recipients had to send a fee with their entry, being hooked by the promise of big cash prizes as well as the quick and easy test.
They were also encouraged to enter with wording such as "Warning of impending forfeiture" that suggested the recipient had already won a prize, and would lose it if they ignored the letter.
What victims were not told is that this first letter was just the start of multiple mailings, and a new fee had to be paid with each subsequent reply.
The FTC wrote in its civil action against Next-Gen Inc and the associated companies linked to Brandes: "The Defendants send multiple other versions of games of skill mailers to consumers, with similar deceptive devices, making similar false or misleading claims that the consumer has already won, or is likely to win, a substantial cash prize in exchange for answering a simple arithmetic question and paying a registration fee."
The final sting came after victims had been milked repeatedly for entry fees, the crooks getting shot of them by sending a contest that was designed to be impossible to crack. The FTC described it as a "complex mathematical puzzle that few, if any, consumers can solve." The victims would give up, having lost all their entry fees.
In total, the FTC will be sending compensation to 244,745 mainly elderly victims worldwide coming to $25million, around £21million.
Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said: “The FTC appreciates the support provided in this case by the National Trading Standards Scams Team and our other international partners. Their assistance contributed to the success of the FTC’s case and helped ensure that victims worldwide benefit from this refund program.”
Although using snail mail to scam people feels a bit old school, it remains a problem.
Lord Michael Bichard, Chair of National Trading Standards, said: “Mass marketing mail fraud represents a persistent threat to UK consumers, and particularly to vulnerable and elderly people.
"This investigation and approach to obtaining the proceeds of crime sends a clear message that fraudsters, wherever they are based, can be caught. It is testament to the work of the National Trading Standards Scams Team, working alongside local trading standards officers, that money will be returned to so many victims."
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