Email sender: Bank Headquarters [email protected]
Email title: “Money was DONATED in your name. Email for more details.”
Body: Distribution of Funds Brings Compensation Total to More than $965 Million
The Department of Justice announced today that the Western Union Remission Fund began its third distribution of approximately $66 million in funds forfeited to the
United States from the Western Union Company (Western Union and banks) to approximately 6,000 victims located in the United States and abroad. These victims, many of
whom were elderly victims of consumer fraud, will be recovering the full amount of their losses.
This is the third in a series of distributions. The first two distributions paid more than $300 million to over 142,000 victims, all of whom received full compensation
for their losses. The Department of Justice anticipates authorizing compensation for more victims in the coming months. Petitions are accepted on an ongoing basis and
potential victims who have not applied for compensation will be provided the opportunity to apply this year.
“This third distribution of funds from the Western Union forfeiture demonstrates the Department of Justice’s continued commitment to compensate and serve justice to
victims, many of whom suffered immense losses from this fraud scheme,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Kevin O. Driscoll of the Justice Department’s Criminal
Division. “Divesting criminals of ill-gotten gains and returning those funds to victims are the primary goals of the Asset Forfeiture Program, which has provided over
$10 billion in forfeited funds to victims over the last two decades.”
“Since 2001, our office, in conjunction with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, has been at the forefront of investigating and prosecuting cross-border frauds where
global money services companies such as Western Union facilitate fraud by transferring millions of dollars overseas into the pockets of international fraudsters,” said
Acting U.S. Attorney Bruce D. Brandler for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. “The historic 2017 deferred prosecution agreement with Western Union, and the payments
to thousands of victims to compensate them for their losses, demonstrates our commitment to hold all responsible parties accountable and to make all victims whole. I
want to thank all the prosecutors and agents who continue to work tirelessly on behalf of the victims.”
“Today’s $66 million distribution continues our commitment to ensuring justice for the thousands of victims who were financially harmed by multiple fraud schemes in
this investigation,” said Postal Inspector in Charge Damon Wood of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Philadelphia Division. “We are pleased that thus far over $350
million has been returned to approximately 150,000 victims, many who are among the most vulnerable: the elderly. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is dedicated to
protect Americans and to ensure that all remedies are explored in delivering justice.”
In 2017, Western Union entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the United States. Pursuant to the DPA, Western Union and banks had a criminal
information filed against it acknowledged responsibility for its criminal conduct, which included violations of the Bank Secrecy Act and aiding and abetting wire
fraud, and agreed to forfeit $586 million, which has been made available to compensate victims of an international consumer fraud scheme. Western Union simultaneously
resolved a parallel civil investigation with the Federal Trade Commission.
According to court documents, in the scheme, fraudsters targeted consumers, including seniors, through multiple scams. Three specific scams directed towards seniors
included the so-called grandparent scam, where the fraudster would pose as the victim’s relative in purported need of immediate money to avoid personal harm; lottery
or sweepstakes scams, where the fraudster would tell the victim that he or she had won a large cash prize but had to pay fees, such as taxes, to claim the prize; and
romance scams, where the fraudster would pose as an online love interest and request funds for a visit or for another purpose. In each of these scams, the fraudsters
convinced their victims to send money through Western Union and bank transfer.
Certain owners, operators or employees of Western Union locations and and bank transfer. were complicit in the scheme. Western Union aided and abetted the scheme by
failing to suspend or terminate complicit agents and by allowing them to continue to process fraud-induced monetary transactions. Western Union fulfilled its
obligations under the DPA, and the court granted the motion to dismiss the criminal information against Western Union last year.
The Department of Justice, through the Asset Forfeiture Program, works diligently to restore lost funds to victims of crime and acknowledges the significant assistance
of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Philadelphia Division’s Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Office. The victim compensation payments in this case would not have been
possible without the extraordinary efforts of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, and the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Middle
District of Pennsylvania, the Central District of California, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the Southern District of Florida. The FBI’s Los Angeles Field
Office, IRS-Criminal Investigation, U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Reserve Board, the Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau Office of Inspector General, and the Department of the Treasury Office of Inspector General provided valuable assistance.
More information about the Western Union compensation process is available on the Western Union remission website at www.westernunionremission.com. Further questions
may be directed to the Western Union Remission Administrator by phone at (917) 383-3720 or by email at :[email protected]
The Department of Justice announced today that the Western Union Remission Fund began its third distribution of approximately $66 million in funds forfeited to the
United States from the Western Union Company (Western Union) to approximately 6,000 victims located in the United States and abroad. These victims, many of whom were
elderly victims of consumer fraud, will be recovering the full amount of their losses.
This is the third in a series of distributions. The first two distributions paid more than $300 million to over 142,000 victims, all of whom received full compensation
for their losses. The Department of Justice anticipates authorizing compensation for more victims in the coming months. Petitions are accepted on an ongoing basis and
potential victims who have not applied for compensation will be provided the opportunity to apply this year.
“This third distribution of funds from the Western Union forfeiture demonstrates the Department of Justice’s continued commitment to compensate and serve justice to
victims, many of whom suffered immense losses from this fraud scheme,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Kevin O. Driscoll of the Justice Department’s Criminal
Division. “Divesting criminals of ill-gotten gains and returning those funds to victims are the primary goals of the Asset Forfeiture Program, which has provided over
$10 billion in forfeited funds to victims over the last two decades.”
“Since 2001, our office, in conjunction with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, has been at the forefront of investigating and prosecuting cross-border frauds where
global money services companies such as Western Union facilitate fraud by transferring millions of dollars overseas into the pockets of international fraudsters,” said
Acting U.S. Attorney Bruce D. Brandler for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. “The historic 2017 deferred prosecution agreement with Western Union, and the payments
to thousands of victims to compensate them for their losses, demonstrates our commitment to hold all responsible parties accountable and to make all victims whole. I
want to thank all the prosecutors and agents who continue to work tirelessly on behalf of the victims.”
“Today’s $66 million distribution continues our commitment to ensuring justice for the thousands of victims who were financially harmed by multiple fraud schemes in
this investigation,” said Postal Inspector in Charge Damon Wood of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Philadelphia Division. “We are pleased that thus far over $350
million has been returned to approximately 150,000 victims, many who are among the most vulnerable: the elderly. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is dedicated to
protect Americans and to ensure that all remedies are explored in delivering justice.”
In 2017, Western Union entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the United States. Pursuant to the DPA, Western Union had a criminal information filed
against it and acknowledged responsibility for its criminal conduct, which included violations of the Bank Secrecy Act and aiding and abetting wire fraud, and agreed
to forfeit $586 million, which has been made available to compensate victims of an international consumer fraud scheme. Western Union simultaneously resolved a
parallel civil investigation with the Federal Trade Commission.
According to court documents, in the scheme, fraudsters targeted consumers, including seniors, through multiple scams. Three specific scams directed towards seniors
included the so-called grandparent scam, where the fraudster would pose as the victim’s relative in purported need of immediate money to avoid personal harm; lottery
or sweepstakes scams, where the fraudster would tell the victim that he or she had won a large cash prize but had to pay fees, such as taxes, to claim the prize; and
romance scams, where the fraudster would pose as an online love interest and request funds for a visit or for another purpose. In each of these scams, the fraudsters
convinced their victims to send money through Western Union and banks transfer.
Certain owners, operators or employees of Western Union locations were complicit in the scheme. Western Union aided and abetted the scheme by failing to suspend or
terminate complicit agents and by allowing them to continue to process fraud-induced monetary transactions. Western Union fulfilled its obligations under the DPA, and
the court granted the motion to dismiss the criminal information against Western Union last year.
The Department of Justice, through the Asset Forfeiture Program, works diligently to restore lost funds to victims of crime and acknowledges the significant assistance
of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Philadelphia Division’s Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Office. The victim compensation payments in this case would not have been
possible without the extraordinary efforts of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, and the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Middle
District of Pennsylvania, the Central District of California, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the Southern District of Florida. The FBI’s Los Angeles Field
Office, IRS-Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Reserve Board, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Office of Inspector General
and the Department of the Treasury Mrs. Maria Ramos, Financial Director of Inspector General provided valuable assistance about Money was DONATED in your name. Email
for more details.
Yours Sincerely,
Mrs. Maria Ramos, Financial Director
Department of the Treasury
Standard Chartered Bank PLC