TUCSON, Ariz. — A Jamaican man accused of running a romance and lottery scam that targeted an elderly Arizona resident has been extradited to the United States to face federal charges.
Sherwayne Benjamin Bellinfantie, also known as “Ice Man,” was extradited from Jamaica on June 12, 2025. A federal grand jury in Tucson indicted him in 2022 on charges of Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering.
According to the indictment, between December 2015 and January 2019, Bellinfantie and his co-conspirators allegedly carried out a scheme that manipulated an 85-year-old woman from Vail, Arizona. Using a fake identity, the group convinced the woman she was in a romantic relationship with one of them. They sent her flowers and love notes, and falsely told her she had won a large prize—but needed to pay taxes and fees to claim it.
In total, the victim lost more than $400,000.
If convicted, Bellinfantie could face up to 20 years in prison on each charge. The FBI’s Tucson office investigated the case, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Tucson is prosecuting it.
