Bellefonte woman heading to prison after pleading guilty to role in lottery scam
A Bellefonte woman who used her bank account to move hundreds of thousands of dollars that were illegally acquired as part of a lottery scam was sentenced Tuesday to prison.
Mildred Hoy, 61, was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Matthew Brann to 18 months in prison, a spokesperson for federal prosecutors wrote in an email.
Hoy convinced a handful of people who believed they won a lottery to send her money between December 2019 and January 2021 to “unlock” their winnings, federal prosecutors wrote.
The FBI warned Hoy twice that she was being used as a “money mule” before she was charged in April. She pleaded guilty in May to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud.
Hoy became involved in the scam after she and her husband of 34 years divorced, Assistant Federal Public Defender Gerald Lord wrote in a memo to Brann.
She met another man on a dating website and believed she “fell in love,” Lord wrote, though she never saw the man. He would send her money, which she would repackage and send to others.
“Prior to her lapse of judgment caused by her love for a man who manipulated her, she was a law-abiding citizen with respect for the law,” Lord wrote in his request for Hoy to avoid time in prison.
A long-time friend described Hoy as “caring and trusting” and someone who became involved in the scam because she is “lonely and looking for love.”
This story was originally published March 2, 2022 at 6:00 AM.