ATLANTA - A Jackson County woman has been convicted by a federal jury of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in connection with an advance fee investment scheme.
The jury deliberated for five hours Friday before convicted 48-year-old Kathrine Twigg of Hoschton on the fourth day of her trial in U.S. District Court in Atlanta.
A co-defendant in the case, Anthony Tobin, 52, of Atlanta, previously pleaded guilty to federal charges of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and one count of wire fraud and testified against Twigg at her trial.
Twigg was indicted in March 2009 as a co-conspirator in an advance fee fraud scheme that was operated between January 2004 and June 2008. Specifically, prosecutors say, Twigg combed the internet for business owners and entrepreneurs who were seeking funding for their business projects. TWIGG sent them letters, inviting them to Atlanta to meet with her co-conspirators to discuss their potential projects and how they could best obtain funding for their business ideas. As a precondition to this funding, the victims were required to pay non-refundable advance expenses and fees. Testimony at trial showed no victim received any such funding. Instead, the evidence showed that the incoming monies from the victims went to Twigg and her co-conspirators for their personal enrichment.
Tobin admitted organizing the conspiracy. Over three dozen victims lost money in the scheme. Total losses were estimated to be approximately $3.7 million.
The third co-defendant in the case, Eyal Dulin, 40, of Snellville, remains a fugitive, possibly in South Africa.
Sentencing for Twigg has been set for February 17, 2010. She faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on each count and a fine of up to $1 million on each count.
Sunday
October 6th, 2024
1:23PM
