Latest news with #MillionaireMatchMaker
Miami Herald
a day ago
- Business
- Miami Herald
Fake billionaire steals $2M from Oregon woman in ‘heartbreaking scheme,' feds say
A British man passed himself off as an international billionaire and nearly wiped out an Oregon woman's life savings in a 'heartbreaking scheme' that cost her close to $2 million, federal prosecutors said. Oscar Peters was sentenced to more than three years behind bars after pleading guilty to wire fraud, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Oregon said in a June 4 news release. The 65-year-old also must pay restitution and serve three years of supervised release when he gets out of prison, prosecutors said. McClatchy News reached out to his attorneys June 5 and was awaiting a response. Peters met the Portland woman through an online dating site called Millionaire Match Maker and said he 'was a billionaire living in Denmark seeking long-term commitment,' according to prosecutors. He 'engaged in daily romantic emails and phone calls with his victim and ingratiated himself with promises of marriage,' prosecutors said. He also started asking the woman for money, saying, for example, that he was going through a divorce and his assets were frozen, according to prosecutors. Peters got 'access to (the woman's) bank accounts and credit cards' and had her wire funds to help with these bogus problems, prosecutors said in a court filing. Some wires went to his 'assistant,' who was actually his wife, the court filing said, adding that, in reality, the purported billionaire 'had no businesses, no clients, and no wealth.' He told the Portland woman he'd come to Oregon 'so they could be together,' however, 'something always got in the way,' the court filing said. He also promised he'd pay the woman back, but 'like (him), the money never showed up,' according to the court filing. In all, he took about $1.89 million, or almost all of the woman's life savings, the court filing said. 'He spent over $500,000 on credit cards, over $119,000 on travel, over $68,000 on limousine services and car rentals, approximately $57,000 on Apple purchases, and sent over $200,000 to his wife,' according to the filing. Peters was indicted in 2019, arrested in the United Kingdom the next year and extradited to the U.S. in 2023, prosecutors said.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
British man posed as billionaire, tricked Portlander in $1.9 million online romance scheme
PORTLAND, Ore. () — A British man was sentenced to prison Wednesday after posing as a billionaire online, tricking a Portland resident, then stealing nearly $1.9 million from them in a romance fraud scheme. Oscar Peters, 65, was sentenced to more than three years in prison after pleading guilty to one count of wire fraud, the U.S. Department of Justice said. Is Senator Merkley running for re-election in 2026? Following his indictment by a federal grand jury in Portland in 2019, Peters was arrested in the United Kingdom in 2020 and then extradited from the U.K. to the United States in 2023. The charge stems from a fraudulent, long-distance romance Peters began with his victim through the online dating site Millionaire Match Maker, court documents say. Peters claimed to be a billionaire living in Denmark, seeking long-term commitment and convincing his victim in Portland of the legitimacy of the romance via online communications and over the phone. '(The) defendant engaged in daily romantic emails and phone calls with his victim and ingratiated himself with promises of marriage. Defendant then concocted elaborate lies about why he needed financial assistance – ranging from his soon-to-be ex-wife had frozen his assets or needed money to complete business obligations for their future together,' the U.S. DOJ said in a press release. 'With (the) defendant's calculated promises to repay the money and move to Portland, over about two years he convinced his victim to send him nearly $1.9 million.' Peters was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison, 3 years supervised release, and ordered to pay $1,892,439 in restitution to his victim. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
