Kansas Man Found Guilty of Stealing $195,000 from Elderly Victim in Arlington

Editor's note: The following is a release from the Middlesex District Attorney's Office.

A Kansas man has been found guilty after he stole nearly $200,000 from an elderly victim in Arlington through a foreign telephone lottery scam, authorities said Monday.

Darrell L. Kinney, 55, of Iola, Kansas, was found guilty Monday by Middlesex Superior Court Judge Kathe Tuttman on one count of larceny over $250 from a person over 60. Judge Tuttman will sentence the defendant on Monday, Dec. 5, at 2 pm. 

“This defendant has now been convicted of stealing a substantial amount of money from an elderly victim, by deceiving the victim into thinking she had won the lottery,” District Attorney Gerry Leone said. “I commend the Arlington Police Department for their dedication and commit to solving this case on behalf of a member of our most deserving population- elders. We continue to warn people never to send money to anyone who has contacted you that you do not know. If you believe that you have been a victim of a similar scam, we urge you to contact your local police department.”

According to authorities, between February and June 2009, the elderlyArlington victim was called and told that she had won a lottery in Jamaica. The defendant then told the victim that in order to claim the winnings, she had to pay the taxes on the prize money. In this case, the victim sent multiple checks and cash totaling approximately $195,000 to an address in Kansas.

, working with Kansas authorities, were able to effectively trace the telephone number used to contact the victim, as well as the Kansas shipping address, to this defendant. The defendant was in custody in Kansas on an unrelated matter and, upon posting bail, was placed under arrest on July 13, 2009 for the Massachusetts warrant. The defendant was rendited to Massachusetts by Arlington on August 20, 2009 and was arraigned on August 21 in Cambridge District Court where Judge Roanne Sragow ordered the defendant held without bail.  The defendant was indicted by a Middlesex County grand jury on September 1, 2009. He was arraigned in Middlesex Superior Court in Woburn on September 23, 2009 where Clerk Magistrate Michael Sullivan ordered the defendant held without bail.

DA Leone continues to warn residents, particularly seniors, about the dangers of these telephone lottery scams. Typically, the lottery scam is conducted by a third party who contacts a victim by phone and convinces the victim that they have won a lottery. The party than tells the victim that before they can claim their winnings, they must first pay taxes on the prize money, which is usually in the tens of thousands of dollars. After the victim mails the check, the subject informs the resident they should wait until a fictitious date, when the supposed “winnings” will be awarded. The winnings are never sent.

The prosecutors assigned to this case are Assistant District Attorney Marian Ryan, General Counsel for the MDAO and Chief of the Elder and Disabled Abuse Unit and Assistant District Attorney Elisha Willis. The case was investigated by Arlington Police.