BISMARCK, N.D. – U.S. prosecutors want a Jamaican man who is accused of masterminding a multimillion-dollar lottery scam held without bond pending trial in North Dakota.
Twenty-seven-year-old Lavrick Willocks on Friday made his first appearance in U.S. District Court since his arrest in Jamaica last November.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Charles Miller ordered him held in jail pending a detention hearing, likely next week. Willocks requested a public defender.
Willocks evaded police for years before his Nov. 5 arrest. He's charged with conspiracy, wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering. He has yet to enter a plea. Authorities say the scam victimized at least 70 people across the U.S.
The case began in North Dakota when an FBI agent from Bismarck interviewed a Harvey woman who said she was defrauded out of $300,000.
The hottest stories ripped from the headlines, from crime to courts, legal and scandal.
