Bristol, Virginia Woman Sentenced on Conspiracy to Defraud Charges

ABINGDON, Va. – Kathleen Littleford, a Bristol, Virginia, woman who fraudulently opened several bank accounts, deposited counterfeit checks, and shipped large quantities of cash to various individuals across the country in a scam involving a man with whom she was involved in an online relationship, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court here to three years’ probation, four months of which must be spent in home confinement, Acting United States Attorney Daniel P. Bubar announced today.

Littleford, 77, previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to execute a scheme to defraud financial institutions to obtain money by false pretenses.

According to court documents, beginning in 2018, Littleford opened a series of bank accounts for the purpose of depositing counterfeit checks and receiving fraudulent transfers of funds from other banking institutions. She did so to assist a man she met online calling himself Frank Peterson. Beginning with his introduction and continuing to the present day, Littleford engaged in an amorous relationship with “Peterson”, engaging in frequent emailing, text messaging, Facebook messaging, and phone call communications.

“Peterson” made representations to Littleford over the course of their relationship that he made a lot of money in a trade deal in Dubai, that those funds were encumbered by the IRS due to taxes he owed, that he had a lot of money tied up in stocks, and that he needed Littleford’s help receiving funds from banking institutions because he could not transfer money himself, due to the IRS claims on his accounts.

Littleford admitted today that premised on Peterson’s representations and enticed by a reciprocal love and devotion he showed her, Littleford undertook extraordinary measures to comply with Peterson’s fraudulent financial requests. Littleford knew what she was doing was wrong, but knowingly and willfully engaged in the conduct anyway.

Over the course of the scheme, Littleford opened accounts with at least five local banks and fraudulently received more than $190,000 in funds to which she was not entitled.

The investigation of the case was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service and the Russell County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Daniel J. Murphy is prosecuting the case for the United States.