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ken
Senior Member
Posts: 142
Registered: 10-16-2002 Location:
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posted on 05-23-2003 at 21:50 |
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Couple busted running russian women scam
Here is another example of why you should never send money, never ever, I wish every one would wise up and stop being so foolish.
A women who really likes you will not ask you to send money, nor can she a get a visa if you do send money. If a women ask you to send money this is a big red flag, don't let lust make you blind! If you really want to meet a women go on a group tour with a good reputable company this is the easiest and fastest way to really meet high quality sincere women.
By Alex Roth
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
May 17, 2003
A husband and wife have been indicted in San Diego federal court on charges of using the Internet to sucker lovelorn men into shelling out money for prospective Russian wives and girlfriends who didn't exist.
The case was one of several cited by Attorney General John Ashcroft in a Washington, D.C., news conference yesterday to announce a crackdown on Internet scams.
Ashcroft said federal authorities have charged 135 people with Internet scams in recent months. The crimes range from conducting bogus auctions to setting up fake banking Web sites to collect account numbers.
In the San Diego case, a San Bernardino County couple was arrested earlier this week on charges of using the Internet to pose as Russian women seeking companionship. These fake women would strike up online romances with unsuspecting men and then ask for financial help to travel to the United States to meet them, according a federal indictment issued May 7.
Robert McCoy, 39, and Anna Grountovaia, 31, both of Rancho Cucamonga pleaded not guilty Tuesday in San Diego federal court to wire fraud and other charges. Both are in federal custody here.
Authorities say the couple bilked men around the country, including at least four in San Diego County, out of $600,000 to $1 million.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in San Diego wouldn't comment about the case yesterday. McCoy's lawyer didn't return a phone call seeking comment; Grountovaia's lawyer couldn't be located.
A hearing is scheduled Tuesday to decide whether the couple should remain in custody and, if so, what the bail should be.
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ken
Senior Member
Posts: 142
Registered: 10-16-2002 Location:
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posted on 06-06-2003 at 07:53 |
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more information
For Immediate Release
May 16, 2003 San Diego Press Office
9797 Aero Drive
San Diego, California 92123
Tel: 858-499-7915
Fax: 858-499-7991
Internet Dating Scam Dismantled
San Diego, California - John R. Kingston, Acting Special Agent in Charge, San Diego Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announces the arrests of two individuals on charges of Conspiracy and Wire Fraud.
Robert L. McCoy, born January 8, 1964, and his wife, Anna V. Grountovaia, born October 12, 1971, were arrested at 6:00 a.m. on Tuesday, May 13, 2003, without incident at their home in Rancho Cucamonga, California. Their arrest was pursuant to an indictment filed by a Federal Grand Jury for operating a fraudulent Russian dating scheme via the Internet.
The arrests marked the culmination of an investigation conducted by the FBI, in coordination with the U. S. Postal Inspection Service, the U. S. Secret Service, the Internet Fraud Complaint Center, the National White Collar Crime Center, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Department of Justice.
Initiated in January of 2002 by the FBI's Cyber Crime Squad in San Diego, the investigation began after an individual reported he had been defrauded over the Internet. The victim informed the FBI that he had been induced to wire thousands of dollars to an agency which offered to expedite the travel of a Russian woman he had developed a relationship with over the Internet.
The indictment alleges that McCoy and Grountavaia posed as Russian women under various names and posted on-line ads seeking a serious relationship with men. At times, McCoy and Grountavaia would also respond to on-line ads of other men in order to induce them into developing on-line relationships. After the initial contact was established, McCoy and Grountavaia would then send e-mails and contact the victims by telephone to entice the victims into wiring monies to Russia.
In these communications, the indictment alleges that McCoy and Grountavaia, posing as a Russian woman, would claim to belong to an 'agency' that could help facilitate a visit to the victim's home country. Under the guise of this Russian agency, the indictment further alleges that McCoy and Grountavaia sent additional e-mails to the victims, instructing them to wire sums ranging from $1,790 to $1,850, so the agency could process flight arrangements, obtain visas, and secure placements for the Russian woman in student exchange programs. After the victims wired the money, believing the Russian woman would soon arrive, McCoy and Grountavaia would then cease all contact with the victims.
After processing at the FBI Building in San Diego, California, both McCoy and Grountavaia were arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge Louisa S. Porter on Tuesday, May 13, 2003. The case has been assigned to United States District Court Judge John S. Rhodes for trial.
If convicted, McCoy and Grountavaia face a maximum penalty of five years incarceration and a $250,000 fine on charges of Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and twenty years incarceration and another $250,000 fine on the charges of Wire Fraud.
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