A Texas man and his girlfriend are headed to prison for their roles in financial romance scams that targeted elderly people, including at least one person from New Jersey.
Late last week, 37-year-old Felix Clark (also known as “Joseph Moore” and “Stanley Smith”) of Royse City, TX, was sentenced to five years behind bars after pleading guilty to wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Earlier this month, his romantic partner, 34-year-old Esther Amppiaw, also of Royse City, got 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to a charge of operating an unlicensed money transmitter business.
How the Romance Scam Targeted Elderly Victims
Federal authorities say that from at least as early as October 2021 through September 2022, while living in Florida, Clark conspired and agreed to receive money from a fraud perpetrated by a co-conspirator in Ghana and transfer the proceeds overseas…