A scammer that targeted elderly victims has been arrested and indicted for his alleged role in a fraud scheme that stole roughly $300 million.
According to a release from the Department of Justice (DOJ), Abdou Diallo, a Canadian resident, was at the center of an international telemarketing fraud scheme.
For almost 10 years, Diallo and other individuals worked to sell fake magazine subscriptions to victims in Minnesota and across the U.S. who could not afford to purchase them.
“Diallo and his co-conspirators took advantage of the victims’ desperation to make the magazine subscriptions stop. They called the victims pretending to be from the “magazine cancellation department.” Diallo and his co-conspirators offered to pay off the victims’ “outstanding balance” and cancel their existing magazine subscriptions in exchange for a large, lump-sum payment. None of this was true. In reality, the victims did not owe the defendants or their companies any money. Diallo and his co-conspirators had no power or ability to cancel the victims’ existing magazine subscriptions or any outstanding balance owed to any other magazine companies,” the press release added.
The international scheme encompassed dozens of individuals. Previously, the DOJ indicted 60 others involved in the fraudulent transactions.
More than a dozen Minnesota residents were connected to the effort, scamming vulnerable victims out of millions of dollars.
“This case represents the largest elder fraud scheme in the nation. More than 150,000 elderly and vulnerable victims across the United States have been identified in what is essentially a criminal class action,” said United States Attorney Erica H. MacDonald previously. “Unfortunately, we live in a world where fraudsters are willing to take advantage of seniors, who are often trusting and polite. It’s my hope that this prosecution is a call for vigilance and caution. Combatting elder fraud and abuse is one of the Justice Department’s top priorities and I applaud our investigative partners for their grit and dedication in tackling, at the systemic level, this widespread fraud.”
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Cooper Moran is a reporter for The Minnesota Sun and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected]
