IONIA COUNTY, Mich. — Court records are providing new details into how two men allegedly helped in scamming an elderly Ionia County woman out of $45,000.
The two men have been identified as Jainav Sanjaykumar Patel, 25, of Carbondale, IL and Alonzo Lee Waheed Jr, 27, of Marion, Illinois. They were both charged with Conspiracy to Commit False Pretenses in the amount of $20,000 or more but less than $50,000, or fraud.
The victim was identified as 72-year-old Linda Richards of Eaton Township.
Detective Phillip Hesche from the Ionia County Sheriff's Office (ICSO) detailed the timeline of the scam in his testimony at the probable cause conference for Patel and Waheed.
Hesche's testimony claims the scam occurred over the course of about a week in May, beginning when Richards' iPad froze and displayed a number to call for help.
"When she called that number, she was told by a man, with a foreign accent, that her identity had been compromised. He said he was with the Federal Trade Commission and he wanted to help her protect her money by having her turn cash over to federal agents for her safety," Hesche testified.
The testimony goes on to say that Richards went to her bank and withdrew $45,000. She took the money home, put it in a shoebox, wrapped it in Christmas wrapping paper and then gave it to a man who met her at the end of her driveway in a car.
Hesche said that after the money was taken, Richards received more calls from the scammers, asking to withdraw more money.
That's when Richards told her family about the incident and they contacted the Ionia County Sheriff's Department.
Hesche said he worked to set up a sting to catch the scammers when they came back to pick up the additional money.
Richards set up a time for the scammers to arrive at her home on May 16 to pick up the next package of money. Police were inside as well as surveilling Richards' home when the pickup of the package was supposed to happen but when the scammers arrived by car, they only slowed down near Richards' home and did not stop.
Another detective in the home with Richards reported that the scammer on the phone with her told her that they drove off because they did not see her at the end of the driveway and also saw a van parked that they weren't expecting.
Hesche then testified that they determined that the scammer on the phone with Richards was not one of the scammers in the car, and instead, the information was being relayed to them by the scammer on the phone.
Since the initial pickup of the second round of money didn't work out, the scammers set up a time the following day to return for the package, Hesche testified.
A fake package was put together that did not contain money and the sting was attempted again.
This time, on May 17, the scammers again asked Richards to walk to the end of the driveway and deliver the package to a specific car.
Richards was on the phone with one of the scammers as they tried to convince her to walk to the end of the driveway with her package, but she refused, telling them she was old and her legs hurt.
Another argument ensued when the scammer told Richards that they couldn't complete the package transfer because there was local police in the area, Hesche said.
Eventually, Hesche ordered the vehicle occupied by the alleged scammers be stopped and detained based on the probably cause that criminal activity was occurring. Inside the vehicle were Patel and Waheed.
Hesche interviewed both men and Patel eventually confessed to being involved in a larger fraud ring and that he had committed a similar crime in West Virginia on May 16.
Waheed denied his involvement in the scam and claimed he had no knowledge of any scams. Patel told police that Waheed had willingly worked within the larger fraud ring.
Patel said he met the scammer on the phone, who called himself "Michael," through a friend and that he had received his instructions through a messaging app. Patel told Hesche that he was being paid between $400 and $500 to pick up the package.
Hesche said that this specific fraud case will be shared with other law enforcement organizations to look at the larger scope of the fraud ring.
"This information will be shared with the partners at the FBI to look at the larger scope of their involvement in what is really a multinational scheme at this point. Following this exact mode of operation, this scam involves people believing that their identity is compromised, that the banks aren't safe, and that the Federal Trade Commission is going to send agents to pickup large amounts of cash to keep it safe for these victims so that they're not scammed out of their money through the banks," Hesche testified.
Magistrate David J. Wirth of the 64A Judicial District Court found that probable cause did exist and Patel and Waheed will go to trial
The two were arraigned on May 20 and a bond was set at $25,000 each.
The investigation into the fraud ring is ongoing with hopes of recovering the money stolen from the victims. ICSO said additional charges are likely as they continue to investigate and search electronics for other persons who were targeted in the scheme.
ICSO said that in cases like this, it's very difficult to locate the stolen money after it exchanges hands since it is handed over in cash, unlike other wire frauds.
Deputies said their early investigation shows that the person who was on the phone with the victim was based overseas and used various anonymity apps to hide their identity and call spoofing to make it seem like the calls really came from the FTC.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of this type of scam, you are encouraged to contact your local police department, sheriff’s office, or Michigan State Police depending on where you live.
No government agents, be it federal, state, or local will ever ask you for large amounts of cash for “safekeeping."
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