Honduran National Sentenced To Seven Years In Prison For Laundering $12 Million In International Telemarketing Scheme

United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, announced that CESAR RAFAEL COELLO DOMINGUEZ was sentenced yesterday to seven years in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. COELLO DOMINGUEZ previously pled guilty on May 21, 2025, before U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla, who imposed yesterday's sentence.

"Cesar Rafael Coello Dominguez helped steal millions from victims across the U.S.," said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. "Yesterday, he learned that the women and men of our Office are committed to prosecuting those who defraud hard-working Americans."

According to the charging documents and other public filings and statements made in public court proceedings:

COELLO DOMINGUEZ's participated in a years-long scheme, primarily based in Costa Rica, which operated call centers that targeted and defrauded victims across the U.S. (the "Call Center Scheme"). From September 2019 to January 2023, COELLO DOMINGUEZ defrauded and laundered at least $12 million from more than 400 victims, many of whom were elderly or otherwise vulnerable. Members of the Call Center Scheme intentionally targeted victims across the U.S. with promises that the victims had won a nationwide sweepstakes that required the victims to pre-pay certain taxes and fees. Once the members of the Call Center Scheme realized that the victims had become aware that the promised sweepstakes prize was a scam, they would often contact the same victims again-this time masquerading as lawyers or members of U.S. law enforcement-and attempt to trick the same victims into paying even more money into the scheme. DOMINGUEZ regularly traveled to the U.S. in order to set up dozens of shell bank accounts, which he used to collect millions of dollars of stolen victim funds on behalf of the scheme and transfer those funds back to Costa Rica.

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In addition to the prison term, COELLO DOMINGUEZ, 39, of Heredia, Costa Rica, was sentenced to three years of supervised release. COELLO DOMINGUEZ was also ordered to forfeit $12 million and to make restitution to victims.

Mr. Clayton praised the outstanding work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Mr. Clayton also thanked the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, who assisted in the investigation.

This case is being handled by the Office's General Crimes Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Georgia V. Kostopoulos is in charge of the prosecution.