A 75-year-old Tamarac woman was scammed out of hundreds of thousands of dollars that took more than 30 years to save in a scheme where a man claimed to be a U.S. marshal, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said.
Detectives said they think there are more people who were targets of the “large-scale nationwide organized fraud scheme,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a news release Wednesday.
At least one man allegedly involved in the scheme has been arrested, 21-year-old Mohit Mohit, of Pennsylvania. He was arrested on a BSO warrant in Bradford County in northeast Florida, the news release said.
As of Wednesday, investigators do not believe Mohit was the man who impersonated a U.S. marshal “however, investigators do believe there are more people involved in this criminal enterprise,” the Sheriff’s Office said. Their investigation is ongoing.
The Tamarac woman received a phone call from someone who claimed they were a representative with Walmart’s fraud department and asked her about a “fraudulent” $1,400 purchase of an Apple laptop in her name, the Sheriff’s Office said. The woman replied that she did not make the purchase, and she was transferred to several other people before she spoke with a man who identified himself as “U.S. Marshal Adam Peterson.”
The man told the woman her identity was connected to an abandoned car in Texas that was found with narcotics, cash and “evidence of human trafficking,” the news release said, and claimed there was a federal warrant for her arrest.
The woman was told she could hire an attorney for $100,000 or participate in a federal investigation “to clear her name,” BSO said. The man claiming to be a U.S. marshal gave the woman badge numbers, case numbers, telephone numbers and fictitious names of people purported to be other government employees.
At the man’s instruction, the woman converted her financial assets into gold, the news release said. She was told specifically how to package the gold with an account number on the package and to stay on the phone with “Peterson” as she did so.
“The victim was given a code to provide a courier she would meet at a gas station to make the exchange,” the Sheriff’s Office said. “The victim complied before realizing this was a scam. The victim lost family savings accumulated over approximately 33 years.”
Detectives identified Mohit as the person who made the exchanges, the Sheriff’s Office said. A red Honda Accord and a gray Jeep SUV were used in the scheme.
Mohit will face charges in Broward County of scheme to defraud, grand theft on a person 65-years-old or older and unlawful use of a two-way communications device.
He had not yet been booked into the Broward County jail as of Wednesday evening. Court records were not available Wednesday.
The Sheriff’s Office asks anyone who may be a victim of a similar scam to call Detective Steven Lees at 954-720-2225 or BSO’s non-emergency number at 954-764-4357.
To avoid falling victim to scams, the Sheriff’s Office urges to never send money or share personal information after an unexpected phone call, text or email and to verify requests by contacting any organization directly through an official phone number or website. If a request seems suspicious, hang up immediately and call local authorities.