October 20, 2021 Damian Williams, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that Michael Pearse, an Australian national who was extradited to the United States from Australia in January 2021, was sentenced today to 109 months in prison for his participation in a fraudulent scheme to charge hundreds of thousands of mobile phone customers millions of dollars in monthly fees for unsolicited, recurring text messages without the customers' knowledge or consent – a practice the conspirators referred to as "auto-subscribing."
Advertisement
Two Sydney men have been extradited to the US over their alleged role in a $US50 million ($65 million) scam to rort mobile phone users in a premium messaging service, while a
BRW rich lister worth an estimated $100 million awaits an extradition hearing in a Perth jail over his alleged role.
Allegations against eight members of an international fraud ring detailed in a New York court reveal how the proceeds of their crimes allegedly funded a lavish lifestyle of multimillion-dollar homes, expensive holidays and gambling.
Michael Pearse, 52, from Sydney, and Yongchao “Kevin” Liu, 33, a Chinese national living in Sydney, were flown to the US on Monday to face charges relating to one of the biggest telecom scams in American history.
3 Min Read
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two men have been extradited to the United States from Australia to face charges over their alleged roles in a scheme to bilk hundreds of thousands of mobile phone users out of more than $50 million for unwanted text messaging services.
Michael Pearse, a 52-year-old Australian national, and Yongchao Liu, a 33-year-old Chinese national, are being detained after making initial appearances on Tuesday in Manhattan federal court.
U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss in Manhattan accused the defendants and their co-conspirators of using a practice they called “auto-subscribing” to charge monthly fees for unsolicited messages about celebrity gossip, horoscopes, jokes, love tips and trivia, without customers’ knowledge or permission.
09:16 EDT, 27 January 2021
An Australian tech tycoon could be extradited to the United States amid allegations of involvement in an alleged $65million mobile phone scam.
Michael Pearse, a 52-year-old Australian national, and Yongchao Liu, a 33-year-old Chinese national, have already been taken to the US and both appeared in Manhattan federal court over the allegations.
The defendants, along with up to six co-conspirators are accused of manufacturing an auto-subscription service to dupe unsuspecting victims out of millions.
Random mobile phone users were allegedly charged monthly fees for unsolicited messages about celebrity gossip and horoscopes - even if they deleted the texts - from 2011 to 2013.
Two men extradited from Australia face US charges for US$50m text messaging fraud businesstimes.com.sg - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from businesstimes.com.sg Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.