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A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging the brothers, both of Landover Hills, for conspiracy to commit mail fraud, according to the US Attorney’s Office in Maryland.
Dwayne and Wayne Henry, ages 32 and 34, respectively, are accused of contacting victims by mail and over the phone from October 2020 to December 2023 and convincing them that they had won millions of dollars in a lottery drawing or sweepstakes, but first had to send fees to receive their "winnings."
The brothers, alongside their co-conspirators, allegedly caused the victims to send payments through wire transfers, gift cards, cash, and other methods.
They also sent lottery solicitations, packages, and suitcases with the victims’ winnings to victims across the country using a false address and name, authorities allege.
They then tracked the packages sent to and from the victims, while Wayne received several packages containing victim funds addressed to “Anthony Henry.”
Wayne then opened a pair of bank accounts to receive cash deposits and carry out peer-to-peer transfers, mostly outside of the United States, the indictment alleges.
In early 2023, the brothers and their co-conspirators allegedly caused one of their victims to believe that they won $5.5 million in the lottery.
That victim, identified only as JP, then received a metal briefcase purportedly containing part of the winnings and was told that they would receive a code to unlock it after sending the required taxes and fees.
JP was also allegedly instructed that if the briefcase was opened without receiving the code, the money would be destroyed by an exploding ink pack inside of it.
The Henry brothers ultimately received more than $3.5 million from the victims “based on false pretenses, representations, and promises involving false lottery or sweepstakes winnings,” according to the indictment.
An initial court appearance has not yet been scheduled.
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