Group posed as relatives in peril to steal $2 million in ‘grandparent scam,’ feds say
Eight people were indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday and charged with scamming more than 70 older adults out of millions of dollars, federal authorities said.
The 10-month scheme involved extortion, fraud and money laundering in San Diego County, California and across 15 states.
The individuals are accused of violating RICO — a racketeering statute that involves an unlawful enterprise of debt collection — according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of California.
Under the “grandparent scam,” a person would call an older adult and pose as their grandchild, relative or close family friend who was in need of financial help. Then they would convince the relative they needed money for bail, medical expenses or more funds to avoid additional charges, the indictment shows.
Others participating in the scam would pose as attorneys, bail agents or medical professionals. The various “actors” had a “well-rehearsed script” to convince the victim to hand over money, the news release states.
The suspects would also tell the victims to lie to family, friends and financial representatives about why they were sending the money, according to the indictment.
Each scam swindled tens of thousands of dollars from each person.
The group hid their identities by using false names, renting houses to receive mailed cash and using ride shares or rental cars to pick up the money. They also transferred the money from different accounts and converted it into cryptocurrency to hide it, the news release stated.
“This scheme has left many elderly victims financially and emotionally devastated,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman. “It is unconscionable to target the elderly and exploit their love for their grandchildren. Elder fraud is a serious crime against some of our nation’s most vulnerable citizens. We are committed to combating all types of elder abuse in our community.”
One 73-year-old San Francisco grandmother was contacted by a man pretending to be her grandson who said he had been arrested, court documents show.
Then someone acting as his attorney called the grandmother and asked her to deposit bail money in return for his release. She sent $27,000.
A few days later, another supposed attorney representing her grandson in a “civil settlement” contacted the woman.
The man asked for $150,000. She transferred the money to his bank account.
But the scam didn’t end there.
A third man acting as an attorney asked for an additional $40,000 to settle a lawsuit — and the grandmother sent the money again, the indictment states.
The accused scammers face charges of conspiracy to conduct or participate in an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity.
The eight people who were indicted:
Tracy Adrine Knowles, 29, Orlando, Florida.
Adonis Alexis Butler Wong, 29, Pembroke Pines, Florida.
Timothy “Bleezy” Ingram, 29, North Hollywood, California.
Anajah Gifford, 23, North Hollywood, California.
Lyda Harris, 73, Laveen, Arizona.
Joaquin Lopez, 45, Hollywood, Florida.
Jack Owuor, 24, Paramount, California.
Tracy Glinton, 34, Orlando, Florida.
Six of the eight people were arrested and Knowles and Butler Wong remain at large, authorities said.
Each person charged faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine no higher than twice of the amount involved in the offense or $250,000.
How can Americans avoid scams?
Millions of older adults fall for scams every year, according to the FBI. And they may not report fraud because they are embarrassed or they don’t know how to.
“I know some victims may be reluctant to come forward because they feel embarrassed that they fell for this hoax,” Grossman said. “But I want to assure victims that it is not your fault. You are one of many, many people who were deceived by a sophisticated criminal organization whose members concocted a number of plausible storylines and conspired together to trick you. These are unscrupulous manipulators who prey on the elderly. They are to blame, not you.”
The Better Business Bureau has a few tips for avoiding scams.
- Never send money to someone you haven’t met in person.
- Avoid clicking on links in “unsolicited” emails or text messages.
- “Don’t believe everything you see.” Official websites and emails can be copied by scammers. So can caller ID.
- Don’t order something online unless the transaction is secure, including checking for “https” in the URL and a locked icon in the address bar.
- Be cautious with people you’ve met online.
- Don’t feel pressured to act immediately.
- Watch what you share on social media.
FBI: Look out for these common scams
Romance scam: A person will pose as a romantic partner or companion on social media or a dating app to “capitalize” on the victim who is looking for connection.
Tech support scam: Someone pretends to be a technology support representative to fix an issue on their computer that’s actually non-existent. They gain access to their device and sensitive information.
Government impersonation scam: A scammer will pose as a government official to threaten to arrest or prosecute the victim until they pay them.
Home repair scam: Someone shows up to the victims home and tries to charge them for a home improvement in advance.
This story was originally published August 26, 2021 at 7:03 PM with the headline "Group posed as relatives in peril to steal $2 million in ‘grandparent scam,’ feds say."
