TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — The U.S. Department of Justice announced indictments related to an alleged jury duty scam in Sarasota County on Wednesday.
Anthony Sanders, 28, who is incarcerated in Georgia, and his associate outside the prison, Marlita Andrews, were charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
The pair was accused of defrauding a Sarasota woman out of over $12,000. She told investigators she received a call from someone impersonating a Sarasota County deputy who told her a warrant was out for her arrest for missing jury duty.
The DOJ said Sanders used phones in prison to point the victim to a “Bonding Transition Center,” which was really a Bitcoin ATM. She deposited $12,825 into three cryptocurrency accounts, which was then transferred to Andrews’ own Bitcoin wallet, according to the DOJ.
The Georgia inmate also told Andrews to buy prepaid phones and send them to him in prison via a drone, the DOJ said.
If convicted, Sanders and Andrew face up to 20 years in prison.