Published on: May 31, 2024
Malachi Mullings, a 30-year-old US citizen, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for money laundering using social engineering phishing schemes. He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and seven counts of various money laundering offenses last January and has been awaiting a firm sentence since.
By running romance scams and business email compromise (BEC) scams, Mullings stole roughly $4.5 million from victims. The scams lasted from 2019 to at least July 2021.
His victims include healthcare organizations, private companies, and even the elderly, many of whom lost money to Mullings’ romance scams.
A romance scam is when the criminal pretends to be a romantic interest to steal your money, while a BEC scam is when the perpetrator impersonates a legitimate company to trick another company into sending them information, wire transfers, or sensitive business secrets. BEC scams come with the added psychological damage inflicted on the employees who were tricked (including damaging their professional lives).
“Malachi Mullings, 31, of Sandy Springs (Georgia), opened 20 bank accounts in the name of a sham company, The Mullings Group LLC. From at least 2019 through July 2021,” the US Department of Justice said in a press release. “Together with his co-conspirators, Mullings engaged in financial transactions designed to conceal the fraud proceeds and used some of the proceeds to purchase luxury items, such as expensive cars and jewelry.”
The release outlines several instances of Mullings engaging in fraud, including laundering $310,000 obtained by diverting funding from a state Medicaid program intended to reimburse a hospital.
It also shows examples of where the criminal’s hubris made it easier for investigators to catch him, such as when he used $260,000 obtained from a romance scam to buy a new Ferrari. These purchases helped attract attention to his crimes.