6 from NJ charged in Nationwide Telemarketing Fraud Scheme Targeting the Elderly

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

New York NY, Ten were charged in federal court Wednesday following an investigation by ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New York’s El Dorado Task Force working with the New York City Police Department (NYPD) for allegedly creating and using a “money sucking website” to identify vulnerable victims whom they then targeted and victimized. The indictment was unsealed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) charging Anthony Cheedie, Chad Allen, Shane Hanna, Cameron Brewster, Kevin Handren, Joseph Ciaccio, a/k/a “Joseph Gallagher,” Joseph Minetto, Joseph Depaola, a/k/a “Joe Hall,” Derrek Larkin, a/k/a “Derrek Martin,” and Mattie Cirilo with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with telemarketing. Larkin and Cirilo also are charged with obstruction of justice.

“Those charged in this investigation are purported to have taken advantage of our aging population by posing as telemarketers. This criminal organization strategically gave false promises to continue their swindle and get as much money as possible while destroying the lives of their victims” said Peter C. Fitzhugh, special agent in charge of HSI New York. “HSI will not stand by while the elderly, or anyone else, are defrauded out of their hard earned money. HSI and our law enforcement partners will continue to investigate and arrest those responsible to end their telemarketing scams. Today, these individuals are done making calls unless they are calling their lawyer.”

“These charges reflect how criminals exploit the elderly and other individuals through telemarking schemes. I commend the NYPD detectives, our federal partners, and prosecutors of the U.S. Attorney, Southern District, for their efforts and cooperation in this investigation. Together, we will continue to be relentless in fighting crime that impacts the people we serve wherever, and however, it occurs,” said NYPD Commissioner, James P. O’Neill

“As alleged, these 10 defendants, motivated by greed and the possibility of a quick payday, aggressively targeted the elderly and other vulnerable victims throughout the United States by convincing them to invest their money in various businesses, and then scammed those victims again after pushing them deep into debt. In reality, allegedly these so-called opportunities were just fraudulent schemes to steal victims’ money, and the so-called ‘debt relief’ only further abused the trust innocent victims placed in the defendants. Now, the defendants face time in prison for their alleged crimes,” said Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman.

In or about January 2019, law enforcement conducted a search of the telemarketing sales floor at which Larkin and Cirilo were employed. During the search, law enforcement seized several electronic devices from Larkin and Cirilo. Following the search, Larkin and Cirilo knowingly deleted, and attempted to delete, the data on those devices in an effort to prevent law enforcement from using that data in the instant investigation into the business opportunity scheme.

Nine of the defendants were arrested this Wednesday. Cheedie, Minetto, Depaola, Larkin, and Cirilo were presented in Manhattan federal court. Allen and Hanna were presented in Phoenix federal court. Brewster was presented in Las Vegas federal court and Handren in Salt Lake City. Ciaccio will be presented at a later date. Cheedie, 34, of Jersey City, New Jersey, Allen, 41, of Laveen, Arizona, Hanna, 40, of El Mirage, Arizona, Brewster, 39, of Las Vegas, Nevada, Handren, 37, of Sandy, Utah, Ciaccio, 30, of Hillsdale, New Jersey, Minetto, 32, of Washington, New Jersey, Depaola, 30, of Hillsdale, New Jersey, Larkin, 36, of Elmwood Park, New Jersey, and Cirilo, 28, of Elmwood Park, New Jersey, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with telemarketing through which they targeted and victimized 10 or more persons over the age of 55, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison. Larkin and Cirilo also are each charged with obstruction of justice, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.

This case is being handled by SDNY’s Money Laundering and Transnational Criminal Enterprises Unit. If you believe you have been a victim of the scheme described above, including a victim entitled to restitution, and you wish to provide information to law enforcement and/or receive notice of future developments in the case or additional information, please contact Wendy Olsen-Clancy, the victim witness coordinator at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, at 866-874-8900 or wendy.olsen@usdoj.gov. You may also report it to Detective Christopher Bastos at 917-480-7167 or christopher.bastos@nypd.org.

The El Dorado Task Force is headquartered at the HSI New York Special Agent in Charge Office and at other locations in the New York/New Jersey Metropolitan area. Task force agents educate the private financial sector to identify and eliminate vulnerabilities and promote anti-money laundering legislation through training and other outreach programs. Prosecutors use a full range of criminal and civil laws to prosecute targets and forfeit the proceeds of their illicit activity. Since its inception, the task force has branched out to address all financial crimes–evolving into the largest, most successful financial crimes task force in the world.