Show-Me State Times

A man who was indicted nearly six years ago for his alleged role in a Jamaican lottery scam has been arrested, according to U.S. Attorney Thomas C. Albus.

Christopher Gibbon, 54, was first charged by complaint in the U.S. District Court in St. Louis on July 26, 2018. He was later indicted in December 2019 on one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud and bank fraud, four counts of mail fraud, and one count of bank fraud.

The indictment alleges that between December 1, 2016, and July 2018, Gibbon participated in a scheme where victims were contacted by phone and email and falsely told they had won the lottery. Victims were instructed to send money to cover taxes on their supposed winnings. The indictment states that Gibbon received payments from at least four victims and forwarded some of the funds to co-conspirators in Jamaica. In one instance cited in the indictment, a resident of North Carolina sent $50,000 to Gibbon's address.

A motion seeking Gibbon’s detention until trial notes that on July 20, 2018—less than two days after being interviewed by U.S. Postal Inspectors—Gibbon told his wife he was going to work but did not show up or return home.

According to the motion, Gibbon was living with a girlfriend in Springfield, Massachusetts under the name Raseqhenre Heedram but wore a name tag reading Amos Johnson when arrested by Postal Inspectors in Connecticut on August 28, 2025.

Gibbon will be returned to Missouri and has been ordered detained until trial.

Authorities emphasized that charges listed in an indictment or criminal complaint are accusations only; every defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

“This arrest proves the resolve and relentless pursuit Postal Inspectors have in bringing those who defraud victims to justice,” stated Inspector in Charge Ruth Mendonça of the Chicago Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which includes the St. Louis Field Office. “I commend our local, state, and federal partners who assisted in this case and arrest.”

The investigation involved the U.S. Postal Inspection Service as well as cooperation from agencies including the U.S. Marshals Service Jamaica Foreign Field Office and the Connecticut Organized Financial Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Berry is prosecuting the case.