Four individuals face federal charges from a Pittsburgh grand jury for their alleged roles in a fraudulent international lottery scheme targeting the elderly. Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced the indictments, which include charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.
Yonel Burnett, 28, of Jamaica, faces a two-count indictment for conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. Omar McKenzie, 34, of Florida; Shemeca Shields, 29, of Connecticut; and Nicole Lamont, 30, of Massachusetts, are each charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering. Burnett and McKenzie were both arrested in Florida, Lamont in Massachusetts, and Shields in Connecticut, all during March 2025. These charges connect to previous indictments from December 2023, which included seven co-conspirators, three of whom were extradited from Jamaica.
The indictments allege that the defendants and others carried out a scheme that defrauded over $4.5 million from elderly victims in the Western District of Pennsylvania and elsewhere in the U.S. Victims were told they won a lottery but needed to pay taxes and fees to claim their prize. Conspirators used forged documents with official agency seals to reinforce these false claims. The victims sent money to persons designated by the conspirators. Some were former scam victims unknowingly used to move money, while others, including McKenzie, Lamont, and Shields, were involved in the conspiracy. The money was laundered through bank accounts and money mules before it ended up with conspirators in Jamaica.
If convicted, the defendants face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, fines of up to twice the financial loss to any victim, or both, with sentences determined by the crime's severity and any prior criminal history.
Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey R. Bengel is handling the prosecution. The investigation was conducted by the FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and Homeland Security Investigations.
These charges form part of the Department of Justice's efforts to protect older adults from fraud. Last week, another indictment was announced for a Dominican Republic national in Cleveland, Ohio, linked to a grandparent fraud scam across Pennsylvania and Ohio. Scammers impersonated distressed grandchildren to extract money from grandparents, using rideshare drivers for the money delivery.
An indictment means the individual is accused but presumed innocent until proven guilty.