NEW YORK, N.Y. – A Bronx woman has been sentenced to more than four years in federal prison for orchestrating a multi-year sweepstakes scam that defrauded elderly victims across the United States of more than $1.6 million, prosecutors announced Wednesday.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, 31-year-old Ricki Rickaline Gibbs was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Karas to 51 months in prison for her role in a nationwide wire and mail fraud conspiracy. Gibbs pleaded guilty in September 2025.
Prosecutors said that from 2019 through 2023, Gibbs and her co-conspirators contacted elderly victims by phone or text, falsely claiming they had won large cash prizes and luxury cars. The scammers then told victims they needed to pay taxes or processing fees before collecting their winnings. Victims were directed to send money through checks, wire transfers, gift cards, and even cash concealed in mailed packages.
After victims made initial payments, Gibbs and others continued to pressure them for more money, using follow-up messages and emotional manipulation—including romance scam tactics—to sustain the fraud.
Prosecutors said Gibbs personally received or controlled more than $1.3 million in fraudulent proceeds, which she used to fund a clothing business called “Fairy’s Crown” and purchase luxury goods. Gibbs, a dual citizen of Jamaica and the United States, operated the scheme from both countries alongside co-conspirators based in Jamaica.
When interviewed by investigators, Gibbs falsely claimed to be a victim of the scam herself, telling law enforcement that she had been deceived by men named “Simon” and “Peter” who promised her an $8.5 million prize.
U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said Gibbs’s sentencing delivers justice for vulnerable victims targeted by her deception. “Fraudsters who prey on our most vulnerable must be brought to justice,” Clayton said. “Today’s sentence reinforces that message.”
In addition to her prison term, Gibbs was ordered to serve three years of supervised release and to pay $1,018,703 in forfeiture and $1,379,402 in restitution to her victims.
A Bronx woman received more than four years in prison for running a $1.6 million sweepstakes scam that defrauded elderly victims across the United States.
