Troy Murray was sentenced to 121 months for organizing the sale of personal information of more than 7 million elderly Americans to scammers in Jamaica. DOJ says the stolen data enabled lottery fraud and led to over $9.5 million in victim losses.

Troy Murray was sentenced to 121 months in federal prison for a scheme in which DOJ says he organized and sold large lists of personal information belonging to elderly Americans to scammers located in Jamaica. Prosecutors said the personal data included information that scammers could use to increase credibility when targeting victims, particularly older adults who are frequently targeted by high-trust “lottery” and impersonation fraud. DOJ alleges the scheme supported fraud campaigns in which victims were told they had won lotteries or money-related prizes and then were pressured to pay fees or provide further information. By supplying data at enormous scale—covering more than 7 million elderly individuals—Murray’s operation allegedly helped scammers tailor contact attempts and appear more legitimate. The government reported that the scheme resulted in more than $9.5 million in victim losses. The case underscores how data brokerage and large-scale data theft can function as an enabling layer for downstream fraud, not just as a standalone privacy crime. Once personal data is in the hands of criminals, it can drive higher success rates for telephone scams, spoofed identity calls, and payment-in-progress “lock-in” tactics. For consumers, the case is a warning that even if fraud begins as a call or message, the underlying power often comes from stolen datasets. For institutions and data holders, it highlights the importance of data protection and controls that prevent misuse by third parties.