Man charged in laundering scheme
Canadian accused of collecting millions via phony grandkid calls.
Calls to seniors pretending to be from grandkids in trouble and needing money may be more than isolated or random cons — a man has been arrested in South Florida on charges of laundering millions of dollars generated by organized call centers.
Stephan Moskwyn, 32, of Canada, was detained at the Miami airport on his way to Chile, according to federal officials. Charges against him involve financial transactions in South Florida that investigators say are tied to money generated by Canadian call centers victimizing older Americans.
Various forms of the con have been around for years, and seniors in South Florida are often the targets. State officials warned about it in a Palm Beach County workshop a few weeks ago.
A caller pretends to be — or to call on behalf of — a grandchild or other relative. The call often comes at night and the voice may sound muffled. A worried senior may unwittingly help the scammer by blurting out a name of a relative: “John? Is that you?”
Prosecutors described Moskwyn as the leader of a scheme to launder the proceeds.
“As alleged, this scam exploited the kindness and trust of elderly American citizens by convincing them that loved ones were in trouble and needed money,” said Wifredo A. Ferrer, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, in a statement Friday. “We will vigorously pursue those who callously prey on our society’s most vulnerable populations. Criminals who engage in these scams must know that they are not safe from prosecution, merely because they operate from foreign countries or use virtual currencies.”
Federal agents investigated for almost a year, records in the case show. At one point, Moskwyn traveled to South Florida under an assumed name but investigators traced a rental car to his real identity, records say.
Moskwyn had employ- ees in Canadian call centers instruct victims to send a kind of money order that is difficult to trace, such as a Green Dot MoneyPak, according to investigators. Then it was eventually converted to bitcoin, a virtual currency, officials said.
Investigators also cited recorded conversations.
“Moskwyn stated that the call centers target elderly individuals in the United States and that they have individuals pose as ‘kids’ pretending to be the relatives of the elderly victims,” according to documents filed in the case. “Moskwyn said that ‘kids’ tell the victims they are in legal trouble or in an accident.”
Moskwyn was arrested in Miami on Oct. 20 as he flew from Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, on a layover to Chile, records show.
Attempts to reach Moskwyn or a lawyer representing him were not immediately successful.
“Although we take all financial criminal violations seriously, we pay special attention to those that target some of the most vulnerable in our society,” said Robert C. Hutchinson, acting special agent in charge for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements, Homeland Security Investigations.