Ronnie Duane Booth, Aiding and Abetting an Unlicensed Money Transmitting Business, Louisiana 2021

TYLER, TX – A trio of Texans now residing in Louisiana have confessed to their roles in a sprawling, transnational fraud scheme that bilked nearly 2,000 victims out of approximately $3.2 million. The scheme preyed on the vulnerable, particularly the elderly, through deceptive calls promising everything from mortgage modifications to Social Security benefit repayments and bogus IRS demands.

Ronnie Duane Booth, 38, and Mary Elizabeth Beaman Booth, 40, both formerly of Forney, Texas, pleaded guilty on August 24, 2021, to aiding and abetting an unlicensed money transmitting business. Tracey Brookshier, 52, formerly of Kingsville, Texas, followed suit on August 25, 2021, entering a guilty plea to the same charge before U.S. Magistrate Judge John D. Love. Acting U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei made the announcement, vowing continued commitment to protecting vulnerable populations.

The operation worked by using overseas call centers to contact victims and pressure them into sending payments through money service businesses or via mail. The Booths and Brookshier weren’t making the calls, they were the mules – tasked with collecting the cash and checks from these sources and depositing them into accounts controlled by the masterminds behind the scheme. This allowed the fraudsters to avoid detection and continue their relentless targeting of unsuspecting citizens. One co-conspirator, Jeremy Christopher Jones, already pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering in June.

Court records reveal the scope of each defendant’s involvement. Brookshier admitted to handling and depositing roughly $126,000 in stolen funds. Mary Booth confessed to collecting and depositing approximately $155,000. Ronnie Booth, the third member of the trio, admitted to laundering $91,000. While seemingly disparate, the combined total represents a significant portion of the $3.2 million swindled from the victims, many of whom are elderly and had their life savings stolen.

“Defrauding elder persons of their life savings deprives them of a secure future and causes significant emotional distress to both the victim and their families,” Ganjei stated. J. Russell George, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, echoed the sentiment, emphasizing the collaborative effort between multiple federal agencies to bring these perpetrators to justice. The investigation underscores the growing threat of transnational fraud and the importance of interagency cooperation.

Each defendant faces a potential prison sentence of up to five years in federal prison. Sentencing will be determined by the court, taking into account advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. Those who believe they may have been victimized by this or similar scams are urged to contact the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). Reporting is crucial to identifying and stopping these predatory schemes before more lives are ruined.

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