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Federal Trade Commission Chairman Jon Leibowitz issued the following statement regarding the Sentencing of Osman Bah, of Owings Mills, Md., to 108 months in prison for his role in a phony sweepstakes scheme that defrauded thousands of U.S. consumers of more than $10 million.  Operators of this scam called consumers and told them that they were from the Federal Trade Commission, and that to receive their prize, victims had to wire thousands of dollars for a purported refundable insurance fee to Bah.

“I’d like to thank the U.S. Department of Justice and in particular Lanny A. Breuer, the Assistant Attorney General for the DOJ’s Criminal Division, for their work in bringing the purveyors of this despicable scam to justice.  As if defrauding consumers out of millions of  dollars weren’t bad enough, these con artists went a step further and actually impersonated the FTC, the nation’s consumer protection agency.  This sentence should serve as a warning to other scammers who would try anything like this:  Law enforcement authorities will find you, and you will go to prison.”

The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC’s online Complaint Assistant or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). The FTC enters complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad. The FTC’s website provides free information on a variety of consumer topics.  Like the FTC on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to press releases for the latest FTC news and resources.