An Oregon woman pleaded guilty on November 4 in Muskingum County Common Pleas Court to one count of money laundering, a third-degree felony, in a phishing scam that diverted more than $82,000 from an Ohio dispensary chain with a facility in the Zanesville area, the Zanesville Times Recorder reported.
Arianna May Stark, 27, of Oregon, entered the plea at a change-of-plea hearing, the Zanesville Times Recorder reported. She had originally been indicted in June on 22 charges — one count of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, a first-degree felony; one count of telecommunications fraud, a third-degree felony; one count of grand theft, a fourth-degree felony; and 19 counts of money laundering, third-degree felonies — and 21 of those charges are expected to be dropped as part of the plea agreement, the Times Recorder reported.
The scam, as described in the hearing reported by the Times Recorder, began with a phishing email impersonating a large bank chain that asked the business to update its account information. That message led to more than $82,000 in fraudulent transactions in February, March and April, the Times Recorder reported.
Stark reportedly used an LLC named Annstar Holdings to receive the transfers, and investigators found video footage showing Stark withdrawing money from the account, according to the Times Recorder. The Zanesville Police Department opened its investigation in April, and Stark was later extradited to the Muskingum County Jail, the Times Recorder reported. The source does not specify the month of the extradition, and no date should be assumed.
More than $74,846 has been frozen in the Annstar Holdings account and is subject to forfeiture, the Times Recorder reported. Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Lucas Howard explained during the hearing that Stark was believed to be an intermediary for other actors, the Zanesville Times Recorder reported — an explanation offered in court, presented here as the prosecutor’s account in the hearing, not as a separate finding.
Stark could face nine to 36 months in prison, but her defense attorney Chris Signil and Howard reached a joint recommendation of three years of community control, presented to Judge Gerald Anderson II, the Times Recorder reported. A fine is also possible, of $7,500 or double the amount laundered. As part of the agreement, Stark also agreed to give a presentation on avoiding online scams and provide video proof it was completed, according to the Times Recorder.
A presentence investigation is now under way, and Stark will be sentenced at a future hearing, the Times Recorder reported. No sentencing date was given in the source. At that hearing the court will weigh the joint recommendation against the prison range, the possible fine, and forfeiture of the frozen funds — the next concrete step in a case that began with a single email that looked like it came from a bank.
Photo: Paul Sableman, CC BY