Man gets 54 months in prison for lottery scam targeting older Americans

By PAULA REED WARD
TribLive

A Jamaican man who pleaded guilty to being part of a multi-million-dollar lottery fraud targeting older adults will serve 4 1/2 years in federal prison.

Tajay Singh, 29, was sentenced on Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Robert J. Colville in Pittsburgh as part of a plea agreement.

He is one of 12 people who have been charged in the case, which alleged an organized, international conspiracy.

As of March 2025, more than 30 victims across the United States had been identified. They lost a combined total of more than $4.5 million, prosecutors said.

“The lottery scam in which Singh participated was designed to steal huge amounts of money from elderly victims, who were selected because they were elderly and vulnerable,” prosecutors wrote in a court filing. “It was also designed to use emotional manipulation— confusion, false hope and fear—to induce the victims to pay.”

According to the investigation, the conspirators would acquire “leads,” or spreadsheets containing names, addresses and phone numbers of hundreds of people living in the U.S. They specifically targeted older people.

“As one member of the conspiracy wrote while negotiating the purchase of such a spreadsheet: ‘I don’t want any young persons like the ones you sent the last time … 75 and over,’” the government wrote in a court filing.

The co-conspirators would then call the people on the spreadsheet, telling them they had won a lottery sweepstakes — which usually included millions of dollars and a new car.

However, to claim the prize, the conspirators told the victims they had to pay taxes and fees up front, the government said.

The conspirators reinforced their claims by sending falsified documents that showed the winnings.

According to the prosecution, the conspirators called the victims repeatedly, telling various lies about why their prize could not be released.

The defendants sometimes impersonated lawyers, accountants and federal agents, the government said. In some cases, victims were manipulated into receiving money from other victims and transferring it to the conspirators.

The investigation, which lasted more than two years, began when a local widow and retired teacher in her 80s lost her life savings in the lottery scam.

Singh targeted that woman, prosecutors said.

During Wednesday’s hearing, Singh’s attorney, R. Damien Schorr, told the judge his client had completed 102 certificate programs at Butler County Prison during his incarceration.

Schorr said he expects his client to be deported back to Jamaica. He was arrested there in December 2023 and extradited to Pittsburgh.

No witnesses testified at the sentencing, but Singh told the court that he does not intend to commit any other crimes.

“I would just like to say I learned from my mistakes,” Singh said. “I did a lot in Butler County to get rehabilitated back into society.”