Naman Shrestha
In the 2010s, Washington State became home to a years-long scam masterminded by Ross Hansen, the CEO of a private mint called the Northwest Territorial Mint, and his partner in crime, Diane Erdmann, who later served as the vault manager at the mint. The episode titled ‘The Coin Conspiracy’ of Hulu’s ‘Scam Goddess’ follows Laci Mosley as she delves deep into the case by talking to the former employees and some of the victims of the two scammers. As the duo’s scam came to light, the authorities took the necessary actions to put an end to it once and for all.
Ross Hansen and Diane Erdmann Defrauded Hundreds of Customers Through Their Ponzi-Like Scheme
Ross Hansen was the President and CEO of Northwest Territorial Mint (NWTM) when he met with Diane Erdmann. The NWTM, which had offices in two Washington cities — Auburn and Federal Way, handled the manufacturing of medallions and a business involving different kinds of precious metals like gold, silver, and platinum. Little did anybody know that they would end up scamming various customers for millions of dollars through the NWTM. As the two got closer with time, she not only became the vault manager for the mint but they formed a Bonnie and Clyde-like duo and planned to orchestrate a Ponzi-like scheme for personal profits.
They started by using their customers’ money to meet their personal expenses and expand their business. However, by 2012, Ross and Diane had been deep into their illegal scheme, wherein they used the money received from new customers to pay off older customers as they ran low on assets to fulfill orders. In the midst of it all, they could not fulfill or refund over 3,000 paid orders, which eventually led the business into bankruptcy on April 1, 2016. Reports suggest that their customers, including Margarete Sched, Steven Packer, and Bud R. Jameson Jr., were defrauded out of over $10 million.
On top of that, more than 50 customers were allegedly at a total loss of $4.9 million due to the missing bullion. As per reports, the two scammers also defrauded an additional 20 customers of $5 million. When an LA-based businessman filed a defamation and invasion of privacy lawsuit against the company, it cost them nearly a $40 million civil verdict. In 2018, an official indictment was obtained against Ross and Diane, charging them with defrauding their customers from 2009 to 2017, lying about gold and silver bullion shipments, and stealing $1 million from a Canadian silver bullion producer.
Ross Hansen and Diane Erdmann Are Serving Their Respective Sentences in Separate Prison Facilities
About three years later, in July 2021, the scamming business partners were found guilty after three weeks of testimony and evidence and two days of deliberation by the jury. While 60-year-old Ross was convicted of 14 counts of wire and mail fraud, 48-year-old Diane was convicted of 13 counts of wire and mail fraud. When their sentence hearing approached on April 29, 2022, they failed to show up and went on a run, evading the police for several days. Finally, on May 10, 2022, the police arrested the couple at a motel near Chimacum, outside of Port Townsend.
They also discovered three loaded guns in their car, which was a cause for concern as Ross had previous convictions for possessing a machine gun. Finally, after enough twists and turns, Ross and Diane’s sentence hearing took place on June 6, 2022. Emphasizing the extra effort and resources the authorities used to catch the convicts during the 11-day manhunt, the prosecution requested that they be sentenced accordingly. After much consideration, the judge came to a decision and sentenced Ross Hansen to 11 years in prison. Meanwhile, his partner in crime, Diane Erdmann, was sentenced to five years in prison.
In addition, the duo was ordered to pay more than $60 million in restitution to their victims. In July 2024, the scammers submitted an appeal to the court, claiming that their motion for acquittal was improperly denied. However, from what we can tell, the court decided to uphold their convictions and sentences as there was sufficient evidence against both of them. As of May 2024, the former president of Northwest Territorial Mint was serving his sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Sheridan, Oregon, while the ex-vault manager of NWTM was incarcerated at the minimum-security Federal Correctional Facility in Pekin, Illinois.
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