KINGSTON, Jamaica — A man believed to be the ringleader in a Jamaican lottery scam was apprehended earlier this month following the arrest of an elderly US woman in connection to the scam last year.

Investigators said 22-year-old Kristoff Cain, who is said to be Jamaican, was the ringleader of a group that tricked senior citizens into mailing money using several different stories.

According to US media reports, in one instance, scammers would call victims and tell them they won the lottery but they must send money to receive their winnings and in other caes, the scammers would identify themselves as FBI or IRS agents and scare people into sending money.

The US woman, Audrey Huff, 73, served as one of the scam ring’s money mules and wired nearly US$300,000 to Jamaican scammers until she was arrested last year, police said.

She pleaded guilty to charges including corrupt organisation, theft by deception and conspiracy and was sentenced to probation.

The reports further stated that Cain was taken into custody in Florida, but the exact location and circumstances around his arrest were unclear.  

However, the US attorney general’s office charged him with corrupt organisation, theft by deception and conspiracy.

He is currently in the Allegheny County Prison, awaiting a preliminary hearing on May 23.