Man charged in $1 million Internet fraud

I don’t want to scare anyone, but it’s important to take precautions when buying coins online. Here’s an article about a man who defrauded Ebayers of about $1 million.

PEORIA, Ill. – A Peoria man is charged with defrauding eBay and its customers of about $1 million by selling coins over the Internet that were never delivered, federal prosecutors alleged Wednesday.

Anthony L. McEnroe, 35, offered gold and silver coins through the online buying service in 2000 and 2001, along with advance orders for special-edition quarters commemorating each of the nation’s 50 states, U.S. Attorney Jan Paul Miller said in a statement.

McEnroe was suspended by eBay when orders went unfilled, but continued to sell coins through the service by using different business names and identification, according to the 10-count indictment filed in U.S. District Court in Peoria.

Federal agents found $350,000 in coins while executing a search warrant at McEnroe’s Bloomington warehouse in May 2001, according to the indictment. McEnroe told agents the coins would be shipped to eBay customers, but instead sold them to another set of buyers and diverted the money to personal accounts and a business he owned that sold Mexican pottery, the indictment says.

McEnroe does not have a listed telephone number and could not be reached for comment. He will be issued a summons to appear in court Nov. 10, according to court records.

If convicted, he faces up to 60 years in prison and $750,000 in fines. He faces two counts of wire fraud, six counts of mail fraud and two counts of money laundering, prosecutors said.

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