Washington man charged in $2.7-million Alaska fraud case

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A Washington state man suspected of bilking more than a dozen Alaskans out of a total of $2.7 million was arrested Thursday after being charged with wire fraud and money laundering.

Floyd Mann Jr., 55, of Puyallup, told victims he had cancer caused by taking a drug from a major pharmaceutical company, according to federal prosecutors.

He claimed he was in line to receive a multimillion-dollar settlement and would pay them a substantial return if they helped pay medical bills and other expenses connected to the lawsuit before the settlement was released by a judge, Assistant U.S. Attorney Aunnie Steward said.

Mann used the money to gamble and won more than $1 million at a casino, prosecutors said.

Mann told investors the lawsuit was covered by a gag order and that inquiring about the case would result in penalties, according to his indictment. He is also accused of saying he would die without more medical treatment and that the FBI and a private security firm were providing security because the drug company wanted him killed.

Prosecutors said Mann forged documents to back up his ruse, including a fake letter from the Texas Supreme Court indicating he would be awarded $189 million.

A federal grand jury in Anchorage indicted Mann on 11 counts of wire fraud and eight counts of money laundering.

A federal grand jury in Seattle indicted Mann’s wife, Cheryl Mann, 51, with one count of defrauding the Social Security Administration.

Directory assistance did not list a phone number for Floyd or Cheryl Mann.

The family collected about $56,000 in Supplemental Security Income benefits while the Alaska fraud, which started in November 2011, was going on, prosecutors said. Cheryl Mann, who won $125,000 at a casino, failed to report that the family’s income and assets had changed.

Her winnings and money obtained by her husband would have made the family ineligible for need-based Supplemental Security Income payments, prosecutors said.