Edna Fiedler of Washington was sentenced to two years in prison and five years of supervised release for attempting to defraud U.S. citizens in a scheme called Nigerian check scam .
Fiedler pleaded guilty in aiding her cohorts in Nigeria send fake checks to victims who agreed to go to the bank and cash those on behalf of the sender. The Nigerians would then send the prospective victims’ names as well as fake documents that looked like Wal-Mart money orders, Bank of America checks, U.S. Postal Service checks and American Express traveler’s checks to Fiedler. She would then fill out the check based on their instructions and send them to potential victims.
The victims then head to the bank to cash the check and send the money to Fiedler. Victims are promised some commission out of the transaction but when the checks are found to be fake, they become responsible for the full amount.
When caught, Fiedler has sent out $609,000 worth of fake checks and money orders. In her house, the U.S. Secret Service agents found additional fake checks amounting to $1.1 million.
