U.S. Woman Launders Millions of Dollars for Pig-Butchering Scam

Cristine Petitfrere, a 30-year-old Florida woman, pleaded guilty in the United States to assisting her co-conspirator in transferring the proceeds of pig-butchering scam overseas.

It is reported that after receiving transfers from victims of the pig-butchering scam, she kept some of the money as a ‘fee’ and then transferred the remaining proceeds to her co-conspirator overseas.

According to court documents, she used bank accounts to launder more than $2.7 million and earned hundreds of thousands in fees.

Pig-butchering scams are also known as love scams and romance scams. Fraudsters portray a false image of themselves online, lie to win the trust of their victims and ask for money from them. This scam not only costs victims financial loss but also brings them emotional damage.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, in 2023, Americans lost $1.14 billion to pig-butchering scams.

Brian Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, said, “Romance scams cause not only significant losses but also profound emotional harm to countless individuals.”

Petitfrere pleaded guilty and will face up to ten years in prison.