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Should have seen it coming: Feds charge psychics with fraud
David Sedore, Palm Beach Business.com
FORT LAUDERDALE — Ten South Florida residents who claimed to be fortune tellers and psychics face as much as 20 years in prison after being charged with mail and wire fraud for allegedly taking more than a dozen victims for more than $40 million.
Those charged are: Rose Marks, 60; Nancy Marks, 42; Cynthia Miller, 33; Rosie Marks, 36; Victoria Eli, 65; Vivian Marks, 21; Ricky Marks, 39; Michael Marks, 33; Donnie Eli, 38; and Peter Wolofsky, 84. All are Fort Lauderdale residents with the exception of Wolofsky, who is from Boca Raton.
U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer said the 61-count indictment is the result of “Operation Crystal Ball,” which focused on the activities of a group that claimed to be fortunetellers, psychic readers and spiritual advisors.
According to court documents, the defendants claimed they could remove evil spirits or curses that were the cause of illnesses, financial problems, family problems and other difficulties faced by their victims.
In one case, a victim identified in the indictment as JH was told that she was cursed and had to sacrifice a large sum of money because money is the root of all evil. Nancy Marks, the purported psychic, told JH that she would remove the curse for free — Marks would take a large sum of money off JH’s hands for free, emphasizing that the transfer was a sacrifice and not a payment. JH never saw the money again.
In another case, Marks told a victim identified as LB that a sister in a previous life had cursed her and all females in the family. To rid herself of the curse, LB would have to make a sacrifice of money — which had to be subsequently cleansed and kept out of circulation. Marks also convinced LB to buy her a Cartier watch which she would use “to turn back time” and return love to LB’s life. Once Marks was done with her work, she would return the Cartier to LB. She never did.
According to the indictment, the defendants used magic tricks and lies to frighten their victims into giving them money and other valuables, including jewelry and gold coins. If the victims failed to do so, they and their families would suffer diseases, hauntings, and financial hardships. They promised to return the money and the valuables but instead used the money for their own benefit.
The indictment asks for a court order to seize $40 million in cash, a home in Fort Lauderdale, a 1977 Rolls Royce, a 1998 Bentley, several Mercedes, a Land Rover, nearly $1.9 million in gold coins and other items. 
