BOSTON — A South Boston man has been indicted by a grand jury in Boston in connection with a scheme that defrauded a 75-year-old elderly man from Berkshire County of approximately $500,000, the U.S. Attorney said.
Urvishkumar Vipulkumar Patel, 21, was indicted Tuesday on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, U.S. Attorney Josh Levy said in a statement. Patel was arrested and charged by criminal complaint on Oct. 7. He was subsequently released by the court on conditions including GPS monitoring and orders that he remain in Massachusetts.
According to the charging documents, beginning in or about February and continuing until on or about Oct. 7, Patel and others participated in a scheme to defraud victims.
Prosecutors allege that Patel’s co-conspirator called the victim and posed as an official from the U.S. Treasury Department named “Sam Wilson.”
Wilson allegedly told the victim that U.S. Treasury documents showed him as being involved in a money laundering scheme and instructed the victim to take out cash from his bank accounts to send to the Treasury Department for safekeeping, prosecutors said.
Wilson allegedly directed the victim to place the cash in a taped box with the victim’s name and address written on it and then sent couriers to the victim’s home to collect the boxes of cash, prosecutors said.
Before each collection, Wilson allegedly made the victim describe the clothes he would be wearing and gave the victim with a “PIN” passcode for the couriers to recite upon pickup.
On or about Oct. 7, Patel allegedly drove from South Boston to North Adams to get cash from the victim, and spoke with a person he believed to be the victim and gave the prearranged passcode, before taking the box of cash and driving away, prosecutors said. Patel was immediately apprehended.
An investigation remains ongoing.
Members of the public who believe they are victims of a cybercrime – including elder fraud scams, cryptocurrency scams, romance scams, investment scams, and business email compromise fraud scams – should send an email to USAMA.CyberTip@usdoj.gov.
To report elder fraud, visit the FBI’s IC3 Elder Fraud Complaint Center or contact the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833–FRAUD–11 (833–372–8311) Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
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