A California woman named Lanette Bashore has been sentenced to 30 months in jail and ordered to pay more than $1 million in compensation for a fraud scheme that ran for over two decades, during which she used the stolen funds to support her lifestyle and gambling habits.
Bashore was given the sentence in Albuquerque, New Mexico, due to running a scheme in which she claimed to control a multi-million dollar fortune that appeared to be tied up in taxes and other financial obstructions.
To make this scheme work, Bashore tended to gain he victim’s trust by using a mutual acquaintance before convincing people to deposit large sums of money into accounts to unlock a large fortune.
Bashore offered a promise of big returns to the victims. In reality, though, she was using this money to fund her lavish habits, which included gambling.
The FBI eventually opened up an investigation due to suspicions being aroused and reporting the fraud, which led to her being interviewed by the FBI.
She eventually pleaded guilty to mail fraud and will spend nearly three years in prison. Upon release, Bashore will face up to three years of supervised release.
Fraud is rising each year in the United States
Online scams and fraud have been steadily on the rise in the USA over the years. In 2024, $16.6 billion in losses was reported to the FBI.
A survey by the Pew Research Centre identified that nine in ten Americans view online fraud and attacks are a national problem.
Furthermore, around 73% of adults have been victims of fraud of some kind, whether it be credit card fraud or online shopping scams.
Nearly three-quarters of Americans (71%) stated in the survey that they know how to avoid falling for a scam, yet several billion pounds are lost each year to these types of fraud schemes.
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