A Maryland man has been sentenced to just over a year in prison and ordered to pay back $5.45 million after admitting to laundering money from fraud schemes, according to U.S. Attorney Thomas C. Albus.
James Marcus Dyett, 60, pleaded guilty in November to one count of money laundering conspiracy. Prosecutors said he worked with at least seven others to hide the origins of funds obtained through fraud, transferring the money into cryptocurrency or other accounts. The group received more than $8 million from at least 36 victims who were targeted by business email compromise and romance fraud scams.
The case revealed that Dyett began communicating with someone known as “Victoria” on WhatsApp in October 2022. She offered him a job processing cryptocurrency transactions for Coins2Trade, promising a commission for each transaction. Victoria provided documents for Dyett to create JMD Consultant Services LLC in Maryland and introduced him to Richard Charles Appelbaum and another person identified as “E.S.” These individuals trained Dyett remotely, instructing him to set up multiple business entities and open numerous bank and cryptocurrency accounts under his own name.
According to court records, Dyett was told to provide account information so funds could be moved quickly into cryptocurrency accounts. The conspirators falsely stated on company documents that their businesses were involved in areas such as auto consulting and real estate management, but these claims were only meant to make the transfers appear legitimate.
Between February 2022 and April 2023, at least 24 business bank accounts were opened as part of the scheme.
Dyett’s co-defendant Lisa Mae Burnett was listed on corporate documents for JMD Consultant Services LLC and met Dyett at a bank in April 2023 where they attempted a fraudulent $2 million wire transfer. Burnett is currently serving a five-year prison sentence and was also ordered to repay $5.45 million. Appelbaum received a three-year sentence and must repay $2.3 million.
The investigation was led by the FBI and Baltimore County Police Department in Maryland. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman prosecuted the case.
The public is encouraged to report online fraud through the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov.
