Five Arrested in $8 Million Tech Support Scam Targeting Older People, Including Arizona Victims

Five arrested in $8 million tech support scam targeting elderly victims, including those in Scottsdale and Yuma, Arizona.Photo byScottsdale MintonUnsplash

Five people have been arrested and charged in connection with a tech support scam that defrauded older individuals out of at least $8 million across ten states, including Arizona.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Missouri announced today that Dariona Lambert, 22, Zhamoniq Stevens, 23, Chintankumar Parekh, 51, Mehul Darji, 41, and Sital Singh, 42, have been indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

According to the indictment, the defendants targeted elderly victims by falsely claiming their savings and retirement accounts had been compromised. Victims were tricked into transferring funds to the conspirators, sometimes in the form of gold bars.

Parekh, one of the handlers, was responsible for collecting gold bars from victims in multiple states, including Yuma and Scottsdale, Arizona.

In one instance, an 82-year-old victim from St. Louis was convinced by the scammers to buy $250,000 in gold bars, which Lambert attempted to retrieve. Law enforcement agents intercepted her during the handoff.

Lambert had flown from Gainesville, Florida to St. Louis, and Parekh rented a car to drive her to a parking lot near the victim’s home before Lambert was apprehended.

The indictment alleges that Parekh also facilitated gold bar pickups in Scottsdale, as well as other states including, California, and Florida.

Singh and Darji were also handlers involved in similar activities, while Lambert and Stevens worked as couriers. Couriers would be paid in cash after retrieving the gold bars, which were then shipped to conspirators.

According to court filings, Parekh and Darji are in the United States unlawfully, with Parekh having overstayed his work visa and Darji having been previously deported in 2014.

The U.S. Attorney's Office reminds the public that charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and that all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Sentencing hearings for the defendants have yet to be scheduled.