NORFOLK, Va. — A Virginia Beach woman was sentenced to nearly five years in prison Friday for defrauding older people of hundreds of thousand dollars in a lottery and sweepstakes scheme, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said.
According to the DOJ, Terry Miller, 62, signed a cease-and-desist order with the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) in June 2019, to stop participating in fraudulent lottery and sweepstakes schemes.
In those schemes, victims were falsely told they won millions of dollars but needed to pay thousands of dollars in taxes and fees first to receive the winnings.
Immediately after signing that order, Miller restarted her participation in the scheme and continued until she was arrested in May 2021.
Miller would deposit the money the victims sent her into her personal bank accounts, and then convert it and funnel it to people she worked on the scheme with.
Miller also forged victim signatures on fraudulent checks and mailed locked briefcases to victims. The victims were told the briefcases contained their winnings and that they would receive the combination to the lock when they paid their taxes and fees.
However, Miller packed the briefcases with newspapers and magazines from Hampton Roads. About ten people were defrauded of over $220,000, some losing their life savings.
What to do if you suspect lottery mailing fraud
You can file a report with USPS on its website. Requests to transfer or accept funds from a private individual as a prerequisite to receiving winnings are signs of a possible fraud scheme.
For more information on how to identify a potential lottery scheme, visit the Federal Trade Commission's website.
