Houston woman pleads guilty in romance scam conspiracy
PROVIDENCE, RI (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — A third person who played a role in an internet romance scam that cheated multiple victims across the country out of a total of about $3.2 million has pleaded guilty, federal prosecutors said.
Sadae Mills, 28, of Houston, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Providence on Wednesday to conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Mills' role in the scheme was to receive payments that she knew had been fraudulently obtained through internet and app-based romance scams, according to the U.S. attorney's office in Rhode Island.
Over a three-month period in 2018, she took the payments, mostly in the form of money orders, cash, or wire transfers, and deposited them into her bank account. She then withdrew or transferred the money when directed to do so by one of her accomplices, prosecutors said.
The victims were from Rhode Island, New York, Arkansas, Colorado, North Carolina, Missouri and Florida, prosecutors said.
Mills faces sentencing on May 23.
Two other participants in the conspiracy previously pleaded guilty.
Dominique Golden, 31, of Houston, pleaded guilty in September and was sentenced last month to more than six years in prison. Breauna Williams, 29, of Jacksonville, North Carolina, awaits sentencing in April after pleading guilty last month.
Two other suspects await trial.
Romance scams are a growing problem across the country. In 2021 alone, over 56,000 reported victims lost $547 million to such schemes - and there are no signs of slowing down. Earlier this year, another Houston-area man pleaded guilty for stealing $1.6 million in an unrelated romance scam