KC Reporter

A woman from Mt. Vernon, Missouri, has admitted guilt in a federal court for her involvement in a wire fraud conspiracy targeting the Missouri Lottery Commission and a local gas station.

Amy Young, 42, confessed before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud.

As per the plea agreement, Young collaborated with others to execute a plan using stolen and fraudulent credit cards at a Joplin, Missouri Phillips 66 Fuel Station to buy lottery tickets.

In July and August 2022, Young and her accomplices carried out $62,082.50 in fraudulent transactions at the gas station, including purchasing Missouri Lottery tickets. The group dispatched other individuals to claim cash prizes linked with these tickets. They illicitly obtained $54,248 in cash prizes from the Missouri Lottery Commission. In total, fraudulent activities amounted to $116,330.50.

Young's co-defendant Larry Duane Green, 56, also from Mt. Vernon, pleaded guilty to wire fraud on April 15, 2024. He is awaiting sentencing.

Federal law stipulates that both Young and Green could face up to 20 years in prison without parole and fines up to $250,000 for each count. However, their actual sentences will be determined by the court following advisory guidelines and statutory factors after a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney is prosecuting this case which was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation along with police departments from Joplin and Springfield in Missouri.