WHERE IT STARTED
FIRST SEEN: c. 2000s (online-booking era) · GOING FOR: About 20 years
Grew in the United States in the 2000s as online lead sites let unlicensed brokers pose as movers; the first large federal racketeering case, Andrey Shuklin's network, ran from 2013 in Florida.
'Hostage load' scams, where a mover quotes low, loads the goods and then demands far more before delivering, grew with online booking in the 2000s, when lead-generation sites let unlicensed brokers pose as movers under dozens of names. The US Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) got explicit authority over household-goods movers in 2005 and launched 'Operation Protect Your Move' sweeps in 2023-2024 after hostage complaints surged. Federal racketeering cases in Ohio (Shuklin) and Illinois (New City Moves) showed the same playbook: shell companies, fake reviews and bumped prices.
HOW IT WORKS
A customer finds a mover or broker online with glowing fake reviews and a name close to a reputable firm. A phone estimate is given without a survey. On moving day a different crew loads the truck, then announces the load is bigger than estimated and the price has doubled or tripled; goods are driven to a warehouse and held until the customer pays in cash or by app. Deliveries arrive weeks late, damaged or not at all. Operators rotate company names and DOT numbers as complaints pile up.
Estimate given by phone or online without seeing your homeLarge deposit demanded, especially by Zelle, Venmo or cashCompany name nearly identical to a well-known moverTruck and crew arrive unmarked or under a different namePrice 'revised' after loading, with goods held until you pay
HOW USEFUL IT IS TO CRIMINALS
Needs a website, fake reviews, a rented truck and a warehouse; each hostage load can extract thousands of dollars beyond the quote. No body publishes a national loss total, and although FMCSA has civil powers and the DOT Inspector General refers cases, criminal prosecutions like Shuklin's and New City Moves are rare compared with the volume of complaints.
THE DAMAGE IT HAS CAUSED
$3 million
Taken from 800+ customers by the Chicago 'New City Moves' scheme (largest published single case) — NBC Chicago
No agency publishes a total; the BBB logged more than 700 moving complaints in 2024, and the largest prosecuted network (Shuklin) took over $2.4 million from more than 1,000 customers (US Attorney S.D. Ohio). Victims lose not just money but irreplaceable possessions held or dumped, sometimes for months.
1,000+ Identified victims of the Shuklin moving-company racketeering enterprise (US Attorney S.D. Ohio via Oversight.gov)
60 / 30+ Investigations and enforcement actions in FMCSA's 2024 Operation Protect Your Move (FMCSA, 2024)
700+ Complaints about moving companies received by the BBB in 2024, average loss $754 (BBB via Yahoo, 2025)
WHO USES IT MOST
MOST OF ALL: 🇺🇸 United States ▸
Interstate moving is regulated only at federal level, and FMCSA's 2024 Operation Protect Your Move produced 60 investigations and more than 30 enforcement actions across 17 states (FMCSA, 2024).
United States (interstate hostage-load scams)United Kingdom (rogue removals firms)Canada (cross-border movers)
GOVERNMENTS LINKED TO IT
No government is documented as using this method.
NOTABLE PEOPLE WHO USED IT — RANKED BY PROFILE ORDER (NOT BY AMOUNT)
#1 Andrey Shuklin CONVICTEDREPORT PENDING
More than $2.4M from over 1,000 victims · 2013-2018
Florida man who led a racketeering enterprise of affiliated moving companies in 10 states that gave low binding estimates, loaded goods and then raised prices; sentenced to 78 months in Cincinnati.
SOURCE: US Attorney S.D. Ohio via Oversight.gov; The Trucker
#2 Yakov Moroz FUGITIVEREPORT PENDING
About $3M from 800+ customers · 2017-2020
Controlled the Chicago companies trading as New City Moves, Great Moving USA, Green Movers and others that scammed more than 800 customers with hostage-goods tactics; described as a fugitive.
SOURCE: NBC Chicago, 'Moving company scammers face 20 years in prison'
#3 Andre Prince and Kristy Mak CONVICTEDREPORT PENDING
Part of the $3M scheme · 2017-2020
Senior sales and customer-service employees of the Moroz moving companies convicted for their roles in the Chicago hostage-load scheme.
SOURCE: NBC Chicago
SOURCES
FMCSA, 'Operation Protect Your Move' programme page and 2024 results
FMCSA / US DOT, 'FMCSA continues nationwide crackdown on fraudulent household goods movers and brokers'
Oversight.gov, 'Florida man who led nationwide moving company scam conspiracy sentenced to 78 months'
NBC Chicago, 'Moving company scammers face 20 years in prison'
BBB moving scam data via Yahoo, 2025
Commercial Carrier Journal, 'FMCSA continuing crackdown on HHG moving fraud'