Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A federal jury has convicted Atharva Shailesh Sathawane, a 22-year-old from India, on charges of conspiring to commit wire fraud and money laundering.

U.S. Attorney John P. Heekin credited the conviction to the exceptional investigative efforts of both local and federal law enforcement agencies. He emphasized, “This foreign national will face justice for preying on and financially exploiting vulnerable elderly individuals. I am immensely proud of my office’s dedication to achieving justice for the victims swindled in this case. We are committed to prosecuting fraudsters to the fullest extent of the law.”

The scam involved an 83-year-old victim who was deceived through a phone call claiming that $100 had been mistakenly deposited into his PayPal account, urging him to return the funds. The deceit escalated when the victim was falsely informed that $10,000 had been sent to his account, prompting him to repay it in Bitcoin. Consequently, the victim transferred the amount to an untraceable crypto wallet.

Further manipulation ensued when the scammer alleged that $200,000 was sent to the victim’s account, advising him to send an equivalent amount in gold to evade taxes. The victim complied by purchasing 68 gold coins valued at $198,560 and provided images of the coins and their packaging to the scammer. Subsequently, the victim was told that a courier would collect the coins. On February 6, the coins were handed over to the driver of a black Mustang, who was later identified as Sathawane.

A short time later, the scammer told the victim that he needed to pay back another $200,000, but this time the victim became suspicious and contacted the police.

A Gainesville Police Department officer contacted the victim, who told the scammer that he had purchased another 68 gold coins. On February 13, 2025, officers went to the victim’s home, and after the scammer told the victim that the courier was on the way, they watched as a black Mustang pulled up in front of the victim’s house. When the scammer told the victim that the courier was at his house, patrol officers detained the driver.

The victim said he recognized the Mustang but not the driver.

Post Miranda, Sathawane reportedly said he was in Gainesville to pick up a package and deliver it somewhere and that he has been picking up and delivering packages for about a month. He said he knew the packages contained gold because he had to open them and send pictures of the contents to his employers. He reportedly said that after a few pickups, he knew what he was doing was wrong, but the money was too good. He said that depending on how far he had to travel, the scammer paid him between $800 and $1,200 to pick up the packages. He said the people he speaks to are in India and Chicago, and sometimes they change names. He said he delivered some of the packages to Clearwater and that he had been in Gainesville the previous week to pick up a package from the same victim.

According to the U.S. Attorney, a subsequent search of Sathawane’s phone confirmed his involvement in an extensive elder fraud scheme, including participation in over 30 transactions in numerous states. Numerous American citizens lost their entire life savings or experienced substantial financial hardship.

Sathawane faces up to 20 years’ imprisonment for each count.

The case involved a joint investigation by the Gainesville Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam Hapner.

Sentencing is scheduled for December 16, 2025, at 10:00 am at the United States Courthouse in Gainesville before Chief United States District Judge Allen C. Winsor.