An illegal immigrant from India received a 12-year federal prison sentence for his role in an imposter scam that defrauded elderly victims in three states out of more than $400,000.
In February, a federal jury convicted 44-year-old Nirav Patel of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud, and one count of illegal entry into the U.S. by an alien.
This scheme targeted elderly victims with text messages and emails purportedly warning that their Amazon accounts had been compromised.
When the victims followed up on the messages, they were redirected to scammers posing as federal agents who convinced the victims that they were victims of identity theft who needed to withdraw their life savings to be held in phony U.S. Treasury or FTC trust accounts for safekeeping.
In reality, the money was stolen and ultimately transferred to accounts controlled by the scammers in India.
Patel was also convicted for entering the U.S. illegally. Evidence showed that Patel snuck into the U.S. near Vancouver before connecting with the fraudsters in Georgia.
