Oscar Peters, 65, this week received a sentence of over three years in prison after admitting guilt to wire fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.
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A woman using a phone. Photo by Pexels/Adrienne Andersen |
He was also required to pay restitution and serve three years of supervised release after his prison term.
Peters connected with the Portland woman via the online dating platform Millionaire Match Maker, claiming he “was a billionaire living in Denmark seeking long-term commitment.”
He engaged in daily romantic emails and phone calls with his victim and ingratiated himself with promises of marriage.
Having established trust, Peters began requesting money, claiming that he was navigating a divorce and his assets were frozen.
He gained access to the woman’s bank accounts and credit cards and instructed her to wire funds to address these fabricated issues.
Some of these transfers went to his “assistant,” who was actually his wife, the filing noted, revealing that the supposed billionaire “had no businesses, no clients, and no wealth.”
Peters promised to visit Oregon “so they could be together,” but “something always got in the way,” the court filing stated.
He also assured her he would repay the money, but that never happened.
In total, he took approximately $1.89 million, nearly all of the woman’s life savings, the filing said.
He spent over $500,000 on credit cards, over $119,000 on travel, over $68,000 on limousine services and car rentals, approximately $57,000 on Apple purchases, and sent over $200,000 to his wife, the court filing showed.
Peters faced indictment in 2019, was arrested in the U.K. in 2020, and was extradited to the U.S. in 2023.
