A Canadian national has been sentenced to a little over four years imprisonment followed by two years of supervised release and he must pay $460,350 in restitution to victims.  38-year-old Sebastian Chelemen was sentenced for conspiracy to commit wire fraud.  

The government established that between April 2023 and June of 2023, Chelemen participated in a fraud scheme with co-conspirators operating in Canada who called elderly individuals throughout the United States portraying themselves as young loved ones who had been arrested and needed money for bond or a lawyer.  

Once a victim agreed to provide the funds for their loved one’s release from jail, Chelemen would act like the bondsman/courier and arrive at their address for the purpose of picking up the funds.  He would then provide the victims with a receipt that included a case number, the amount of money provided, and the false name he used during the interaction.  

Chelemen personally obtained over $380,000 from the victims in multiple states directly and co-conspirators received another $78,000 from victims who mailed funds as part of the scheme.  Members also attempted to obtain at least an additional $290,000 from victims.  Chelemen was arrested in Sangamon County with over $138,000 in cash which he acknowledged he recently received from numerous victims throughout the Central District of Illinois. 

US District Court Judge Sue E. Myerscough found Chelemen was responsible for over $750,000 in actual and attempted loss, that had victimized vulnerable individuals as part of the scheme. Chelemen pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud on February 6th, 2024, detained on June 26th following his arrest in Sangamon County on June 13th,  He has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since that time. The statutory penalties for conspiracy to commit wire fraud are up to twenty years in prison, up to a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release.