Frequently Asked Questions

Between approximately 2010 and 2015, the Sterling Currency Group LLC (Sterling), owned by Tyson Rhame and James Shaw, engaged in a conspiracy to defraud Iraqi dinar and other foreign currency investors. The United States Attorney’s Office filed two separate forfeiture actions related to Sterling. See United States v. Real Property Located at 225 Valley Road, N.W., et. al. (Civil Action Number 1:15-CV-2032) and United States v. Approximately 8,671,456,050 in Iraqi Dinars, et. al. (Civil Action Number 1:15-CV-2677).

The United States, Frank Bell, James Shaw, and Tyson Rhame reached settlement agreements in the forfeiture actions forfeiting property to the United States.
 

The United States has retained Kroll Settlement Administration LLC to assist with the administration of this Remission Fund. Under the regulations found at 28 C.F.R. Part 9, victims of an offense underlying the forfeiture who have incurred a monetary loss of a specific amount, as demonstrated by documentary evidence, may be eligible for remission.

You may be a potential victim eligible to receive compensation in the Sterling Currency Remission if you:
(1) purchased dinar or other foreign currency from Sterling on a non-refundable layaway order and 

(a) did not receive the currency you ordered and 

(b) did not receive a refund of any payment that you made for that currency;

or

(2) Paid for pending orders that were not filled due to the criminal investigation.

To be considered a potential Petitioner in the Sterling Currency Remission, you must complete and sign a Petition for Remission either in paper format or through the online submission portal.  You must mail, email, or submit online your completed and signed Petition for Remission, along with supporting documentation, on or before July 19, 2025:

You may mail your completed petition package to:

                                                      Sterling Currency Remission
                                                         Remission Administrator
                                              c/o Kroll Settlement Administration LLC
                                                               PO Box 225391
                                                       New York, NY 10150-5391

Or you may email your completed petition package to: [email protected] 
Or you may submit your completed petition package on this remission website.
 

Please note that documentation demonstrating payments to a “layaway” plan or purchase of unfulfilled currency orders must identify the name of the petitioner, date, and amount paid to Sterling or one of its known entities. Examples of acceptable documentation include email receipts or copies of the customer dashboard.  If you do not submit documentation, you may not be eligible for remission.

Please do not submit original documents. 

Your Unique ID is located on the Notice you received by mail or email, starting with the number “83122.” If you are unable to locate your Unique ID, please contact us so that we may assist you.

Only those who entered into a "Layaway" plan with Sterling or otherwise paid for currency but did not receive the physical currency they ordered may be eligible for remission in this matter. If you paid Sterling for physical currency and did receive the notes that you ordered, we are unable to grant remission for those monies paid. Further, anticipated profit or gain is not compensable under the Remission Regulations.

Additional information, including the civil complaint, is available on the Documents page of this remission website. You may also visit the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia’s website at https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga/sterling-currency-action for more information.

Kroll Settlement Administration LLC is a third-party administrator that the Department of Justice has retained to answer questions regarding this matter, administer this website, and process and distribute remission to eligible petitioners.

This remission fund was created as a result of a resolution of criminal and civil matters related to Sterling.

Additional information, including the civil complaint, is available on the Documents page of this remission website. You may also visit the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia’s website and the Victims Program page on the United States Department of Justice’s website. 

The Department of Justice never requires victims to pay money to participate in the remission process. Please contact Kroll Settlement Administration LLC right away if you are contacted to provide payment or information regarding this matter. If you are uncertain about the legitimacy of any communication, please contact Kroll Settlement Administration LLC. 

The Department of Justice never requires victims to pay money to receive remission payments.
 
If anyone claims that they can get you a remission but asks you for money, it could be a scam. Please contact Kroll Settlement Administration LLC right away if this happens to you or if you have other questions about this matter.

You may contact the Remission Administrator, Kroll Settlement Administration LLC, by clicking here, or – 

Mail:

Sterling Currency Remission
Remission Administrator
c/o Kroll Settlement Administration LLC
PO Box 225391
New York, NY 10150-5391

Email: [email protected] 

The Department of Justice can only grant remission to the direct victim of a crime underlying the offense.  

Victims may be eligible to receive compensation for the value of any payments made for the purchase of currency that they did not receive. If the total claims made exceed the total amount available, payments will be made to eligible petitioners on a pro rata basis proportional to eligible claimed amounts. Approximately $5 million in assets will be made available for remission. Please note that all remission payments will be subject to the Treasury Offset Program.

We cannot provide an estimated time but please check the remission website for updated information.  The Department of Justice is committed to working as expeditiously as possible to compensate victims.

It is very important that we have your correct address and contact information.  If you need to update your address or contact information, please use the Contact page on this remission website.

No, you are not required to hire any attorney to represent you in the Sterling Currency Remission.  However, you have the right to be represented by an attorney.

No. We will review any victim impact statement or petition previously received. If additional information or documentation is required, a Notice of Deficiency will be issued to provide you an opportunity to cure. You may contact Kroll Settlement Administration LLC to confirm whether we received your victim impact statement or petition.