Two Brooklyn Men Indicted in Lottery Fraud

BUFFALO, N.Y.--U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that a federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Corey Anthony Buddle, 22, of Brooklyn, New York, and his father, Horace Anthony Buddle, 44, of Brooklyn, New York, and Montego Bay, Jamaica, with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
 
Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul J. Campana, who is handling the case, stated that according to the indictment, the defendants defrauded elderly individuals residing in the United States by leading the victims to believe they won cash prizes of more than $1,000,000 and, in at least one case, a Mercedes Benz automobile. The victims were told they must pay “taxes” and other administrative expenses in order to collect their “prizes.” 
 
One victim, a man from the Rochester, N.Y. area, was told numerous times, in phone calls originating in Jamaica, to send packages of money to an address in Brooklyn. As a result, between May 20 and July 18, 2011, the victim sent a total of $130,000 in 16 packages via UPS and the U.S. Mail to the defendants’ residence at 536 Thatford Avenue in Brooklyn.
 
Another victim, a resident of Missouri, was directed to deposit money into Corey Buddle’s accounts at Bank of America. As a result, she made 26 deposits adding up to approximately $140,000 into Corey Buddle’s accounts from July 11, 2012, through April 4, 2013. The Indictment further alleges that, after April 4, 2013, the victim from Missouri was directed to send cash to 536 Thatford, which she did by sending more than $50,000 in 10 different packages sent via UPS and Federal Express. According to the indictment, some of the money deposited into Corey Buddle’s Bank of America accounts was withdrawn in Jamaica. 
 
A third victim, who lives in Florida, lost $37,000 by wiring it into Corey Buddle’s bank accounts in nine separate transfers between August 2, 2012, and April 4, 2013.  According to the indictment, the victim received a letter in April 2012 purporting to be from the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security, telling him he was $25,000 in arrears on his taxes.
 
None of the victims received anything as a result of their “winnings.”
 
The Indictment is the result of an investigation on the part of the United States Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Kevin Niland of the Boston Division, and Special Agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero.
 

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.