ScamVictimsUnited.com

September 26, 2005
Victims who were bilked out of more than $150,000 in a foreign currency scam will each receive full and immediate restitution, Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist announced.

A Broward County man pled guilty to criminal racketeering, conspiracy and grand theft charges and will provide $150,000 in immediate restitution to 15 victims who either lived in Florida or were victimized when the scam operated from within the state.

Daniel Fasciana of Fort Lauderdale was part of a scheme in which telemarketers enticed their targets into buying bogus foreign currency options and gave unrealistic promises of a huge profit, often two or three times the amount invested. The scheme ensnared some 200 victims who lost some $2 million nationwide. Fasciana pled guilty to all the charges and agreed to testify against his co-defendants. He will be placed on 10 years probation.

One of the scam's Florida victims was Ann Von Duerring of Kissimmee, who is in her 90s and suffers from Alzheimer's disease. She lives with her daughter, Ann Schneider, who feared her mother had no case because she had very little paperwork or proof of the scam, in which Von Duerring lost almost $26,000 - her entire life savings. Crist's office pursued the case and was able to recover Von Duerring's money.

"These con artists worked very hard to steal from law-abiding citizens," said Crist. "The false promises and outright lies robbed good people of their hard-earned money, sometimes their life savings. We will continue to seek justice for citizens who fall prey to scams."

Six of the 15 victims are Florida residents who lost almost $73,000 in amounts ranging from $5,375 to $25,945, and the others were victimized while the organization ran its boiler-room operation out of South Florida. When investigators closed in on the scheme, the operators moved first to Georgia and then to Louisiana. The period covered by criminal charges ran from April 2001 through June 2002.

Crist's Office of Statewide Prosecution, in conjunction with the FBI, the federal Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Broward County Sheriff's Office, will continue its case against Fasciana's nine co-defendants on similar charges.

Five co-defendants - Paul Stanley, Stephen Delong, James Augello, Elaine Kazanas and Thomas Destacio - have been arrested and are awaiting trial. The other four co-defendants - Tony Russo, James Sexton, Ronald Catone and Anthony Garcia - are still at large. The CFTC is pursuing civil remedies in federal court for victims nationwide.