A Gujarati woman living in the United States has been implicated in a multi-state gold bar scam that defrauded victims by posing as federal officials and convincing them to purchase gold bullion for “secure storage.” One victim from Bradenton, Florida, suffered a loss of $1.5 million (approximately Rs 12.52 crore). The fraud was exposed following the arrest of 42-year-old Shweta Patel on May 9.
The scheme began in February when two imposters, pretending to be federal officials, visited the victim’s home with a fake arrest warrant for supposed financial irregularities. They then introduced their “supervisor,” who convinced the victim that instead of facing arrest, he could contribute to society in other ways. Over the next month, this supervisor built a rapport with the victim through daily communications, eventually persuading him to believe he was part of a sting operation against social security fraud.
During the scam, the victim was tricked into converting his $1.5 million retirement funds into gold bars. Patel, impersonating a police officer, later visited the victim’s residence, stole the gold bars, and disappeared. Investigators traced a vehicle used during a drop-off to Patel, who resided in Georgia and acted as a courier in the scheme. Patel revealed she was merely a mule for an unknown individual she called “King,” and authorities noted that illegal immigrants from China are also involved in these sophisticated scams.
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