Two men have been taken into custody after allegedly duping an 85-year-old man from Washington, D.C., into surrendering over $200,000 in gold bars. Authorities revealed this during a Friday announcement.
Identified as Chu Lin, 50, from Fresh Meadows, New York, and Xiean Cheng, 42, from Cornelius, North Carolina, the suspects were apprehended when they reportedly arrived at the elderly man’s residence to retrieve the gold, said the Metropolitan Police Department.
The pair are facing charges of second-degree financial fraud.
Authorities reported that the octogenarian was misled into “protecting” funds in his bank account by investing more than $200,000 in gold bars, following instructions from impostors pretending to be federal agents. (Sven Hoppe/picture alliance via Getty Images)
The fraudulent activity commenced on July 8 when the scammers first reached out to the victim through email, followed by phone calls, all while masquerading as officials from a federal agency, the police detailed.
The scammers allegedly told the victim that funds in his bank account were “in jeopardy of being lost” unless he secured the money by purchasing gold bars and turning them over.
Believing the scheme was legitimate, the victim attempted to purchase more than $200,000 worth of gold bars before the gold dealer recognized the apparent scam and alerted him, police said.
EXCLUSIVE: FBI ADDS ALLEGED COVID FRAUDSTER ACCUSED OF TAKING $5M FROM KIDS’ MEAL PROGRAM TO MOST WANTED LIST
FBI agents assisted the Metropolitan Police Department in an investigation into an alleged scheme targeting an 85-year-old man for more than $200,000 in gold bars, police said. (Photo by Yasin Ozturk /Anadolu via Getty Images)
“Thinking that the scam was legitimate, the victim attempted to purchase over $200,000 worth of gold bars and was alerted by the gold dealer that he was being scammed,” police said.
The gold dealer then alerted MPD’s Financial and Cyber Crimes Unit and the FBI, according to authorities.
The Metropolitan Police Department said investigators worked with the FBI after a gold dealer alerted authorities to an alleged scam targeting an 85-year-old man. (Getty Images)
When the alleged scammers later arrived at the victim’s home to retrieve the gold bars, officers with MPD’s Violent Crime Suppression Division arrested Lin and Cheng, police said.