Ryan Young, Multimillion-Dollar Mass-Mailing Fraud Schemes, New Jersey 2023

A New Jersey man has been sentenced to 72 months in prison for his role in two separate mail fraud schemes that stole over $50 million from victims across the United States.

Ryan Young, 41, of Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, operated two separate mail fraud schemes, according to court documents.

In the first scheme, which Young operated from 2011 through 2016, Young and his co-conspirators sent fraudulent prize notification letters to victims in the United States and numerous other countries.

The letters falsely claimed recipients had won money or valuable prizes, such as luxury cars. Victims were instructed to send small processing fees – typically $20 or $25 – to claim the prizes. Many victims received nothing; others received only a cheap piece of jewelry or a report listing unrelated sweepstakes.

In February 2018, Young pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud for his role in this large-scale international mail fraud scheme that stole approximately $50 million from victims.

While on release and awaiting sentencing on the first mail fraud scheme, Young operated a second mail fraud scheme from March 2019 through May 2022.

In the second scheme, Young mailed out letters falsely notifying recipients that they were entitled to receive unclaimed funds worth millions of dollars, a portion of a multimillion-dollar legal settlement, or a prize in exchange for payment of a small fee of $30 to $40.

Young did not deliver funds to any of the victims who sent payments in response to these letters. Instead, Young sent booklets containing publicly available information or flyers about online restaurant coupons.

According to court documents, Young’s second scheme resulted in $1.6 million in losses to victims.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case.

Sentenced to 72 months in prison and two years of supervised release.

If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311).

Source: https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/new-jersey-man-sentenced-multimillion-dollar-mass-mailing-fraud-schemes