A Colombian man has been sentenced to over three years in prison for his role in a sophisticated international money laundering scheme that swindled over $3 million from victims via phone scams. Juan Pablo Prada Bernal, 24, from Colombia, was given a 40-month sentence after pleading guilty to participating in the conspiracy that tricked individuals into wiring money to fraudulent U.S.-based bank accounts, as reported by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
In addition to his prison term, Bernal has been ordered to pay $327,040.72 in restitution to the 27 victims trapped by the fraud. This decision was rendered by U.S. District Court Judge Andrew G. Schopler, who presided over the sentencing in federal court. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California, the money laundering operations involved scammers who, masquerading as law enforcement officers, coerced victims to hastily send payments under the pretense of averting supposed criminal charges.
The scheme, which operated between June 2018 and March 2020, relied on a network of individuals who opened bank accounts using false addresses and then swiftly transferred money between these accounts to mask the origin of the funds. "These scammers are sophisticated and will prey on emotion and fear," U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath said in a statement obtained by the Department of Justice's press release. McGrath further highlighted the punitive measures, stating, "This defendant turned deceit into profit, so we turned his profit into a conviction.”
Bernal's role involved opening bank accounts at multiple financial institutions shortly before they received large deposits from the scam's victims. He then quickly worked to either withdraw the funds or purchase cashier’s checks to keep the fraudulent transactions ahead of law enforcement detection. To combat such fraud, the FBI reminds the public to remain vigilant and report suspicious calls to appropriate authorities.
