2 Canadians plead guilty in telemarketing scheme; sentencing in November

By: Jim Suhr EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. - Two Canadians each face up to 10 years in federal prison after admitting their participation in a telemarketing scam authorities say raked in nearly $10.5 million from some 37,000 American consumers. Steven Winter, 38, and Sean McVicar, 34, both of Toronto, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to charges of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Sentencing was set for Nov. 2. The pleas Thursday came just days after two other Toronto men were sentenced here to lengthy federal prison terms and ordered to repay nearly $5.6 million for their roles in a separate telemarketing scheme that affected 40,000 people, many of them with poor credit. The U.S. government said that for several years dating to 1999, companies headed by Winter and employing McVicar used high-pressure tactics in duping... [read full story]