Money Laundering Email Scam Lands Atlanta Man In Federal Prison

ATLANTA — An Atlanta man was sentenced to two years, six months in federal prison for scamming homebuyers in Minnesota and Oregon, a New Jersey company and a Delaware law firm of more than $247,000.

Between October 2018 and February 2019, Anthony Dwayne King, 39, laundered more than $247,000, federal authorities said. He pleaded guilty to and was convicted of money laundering conspiracy on Dec. 16, 2020, authorities said.

In a federal indictment, prosecutors said the emails of victims were somehow accessed using malware in what is called a “business email compromise,” allowing King and his accomplices to learn about real estate transactions and redirect those payments to three bogus bank accounts that King controlled.

“These cyber scams can be devastating to businesses and individuals who fall prey to them,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “It is a big reason why the Georgia Cyber Fraud Task Force was formed; to educate businesses and the community on how to avoid them. Arrests and convictions, like this one, will make it less lucrative and less appealing for those who contemplate committing these crimes.”

Federal prosecutors said King opened accounts between Oct. 2 and 17 in 2018 at three banks in Atlanta, Johns Creek, and Duluth under false identities to bogus businesses. On Oct. 17, an Oregon homebuyer received a call from an impersonator directing the victim to wire $45,000 that day to close on a house, according to the indictment.

Several days later, on Nov. 1, another homebuyer, this time in Minneapolis, received an email from someone posing as his realtor, providing wiring instructions for a home closing, authorities said. Following the imposter’s directions, this victim wired $83,460 to one of King’s Atlanta banks, according to prosecutors.

Weeks later, the Delaware law firm received a Nov. 16 email with instructions to wire$68,403 in payoff funds to a mortgage company. That money, instead, went to one of the accounts that King had opened in Atlanta, authorities said. The next day, he withdrew $3,800 in cash from the account at a bank branch, prosecutors said.

On Feb. 27, 2019, the New Jersey company was emailed by someone they believed was a landlord with wiring instructions for rent, according to prosecutors. As directed, the company sent $51,040 to an Atlanta-based account, and King the next day wrote a check to himself from that account in the amount of $9,572 and deposited the funds into his personal account, authorities said.

“King and his conspirators opened bank accounts, using fictitious identities and sham companies, for the purpose of laundering funds stolen from victims across the country through business email compromise schemes,” Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine said. “Now he is headed to federal prison and must pay full restitution to the victims. Our office will continue to work with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to bring those who facilitate these cyber-fraud crimes to justice.”