O’Fallon Man Sentenced on Federal Wire Fraud Charges | WPN World People News

Dana Jefferson was sentenced to 42 months’ imprisonment on multiple fraud charges involving a scheme to lure lenders by falsely representing that he was the beneficiary of a multi-million dollar inheritance.

According court documents, Jefferson represented to prospective lenders that he had been left a multi-million inheritance from his deceased father’s estate, with the amount ranging from $5,000,000 to $200,000,000. Jefferson sometimes told lenders that the funds were kept in a trust, and other times that the funds were kept either in a local credit union or a bank in Miami, Florida. Jefferson also told lenders that he did not have immediate access to his inheritance, providing various explanations as to the reasons why. However, Jefferson had not been left any such inheritance. Instead, the inheritance was a fiction used to induce his victims to lend him money and to offer him free housing at their residences. Jefferson made false promises to lenders that once he gained access to his inheritance, he would use the funds to purchase homes for them, or in some cases would repay double the amount of the loan. Jefferson also promised other lenders that he would purchase them expensive motor vehicles, pay for plastic surgery, cruises and a wedding. Jefferson obtained in excess of $740,000 in loans from nine individuals as part of his scheme.

Jefferson, 54, O’Fallon, MO (also known as Casey Jefferson, Dana Tiberius Jefferson and Dana Tyrone Jefferson), pled guilty in January to four felony counts of wire fraud, and appeared today for sentencing before United States District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig.

source: U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation