00:00
*music plays*

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All of a sudden, I got a Priority letter in the mail,

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and inside this envelope was a letter

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with instructions on what I had to do,

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and there were 2 money orders they were each $900.00.

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Are you mailing cash to somebody you don't know?

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At the request of someone else?

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If so, it"s possible that you are a money mule!

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Hi. I'm Andrea Avery, United States Postal Inspector.

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You may have heard that term money mule

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but what exactly is it?

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A money mule is someone who transfers or moves money

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illegally obtained from victims of fraud.

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If you're mailing cash or packages at someone's direction,

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you're probably serving as a money mule and enabling fraudsters to harm others.

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Some people become money mules after being told they have won a sweepstakes.

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Or they meet someone online or on a dating app

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or they are responding to an online job opportunity.

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"They needed someone to send packages. So, I sent my information in..."

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Although the stories vary by scheme,

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scammers ask the person to receive money or packages from people they don't know

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and forward them on to others they don't know.

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Some money mules know they've been recruited to support criminal activity,

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but others are unaware that they are helping criminals profit.

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"Receive packages at my home and then send them wherever they tell me to send them.

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"I noticed that all of the packages I was sending went to Russia.

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Anyone can be approached to be a money mule,

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but criminals often target students, those looking for work

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or those on dating websites.

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Don't be a money mule!

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It's illegal and you can be prosecuted

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even if you don't know you're committing a crime!

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Don't agree to receive money or packages from people you don't know

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and don't forward anything those people send you.

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Do your homework! Don't engage in financial transactions with strangers.

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Check out any work-at-home opportunity or offer involving transferring money

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or packages with a trusted family member or friend.

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And, finally, report suspected money mule activity or scams as soon as possible.

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Contact the Postal Inspection Service at USPIS.gov/report,

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or call 877.876.2455. Don’t be a mule!