Scammer gets prison after targeting Bradenton senior in fraud case, police say
A scammer has been sentenced to more than 15 years in federal prison after a scheme that police say cost a Bradenton senior $1.4 million.
According to Bradenton police, the 80-year-old victim reported that two men came to his home in February 2024, claiming to be U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents and said there was a warrant out for his arrest. Investigators say it was part of a “nationwide elder fraud conspiracy.”
For about a month, the man was contacted by a woman who claimed to be a supervisor, saying she could help him with his legal issues. The woman instructed the victim to convert his savings into gold bars and give them to her “agents,” according to the Bradenton Police Department.
“Believing he was assisting law enforcement, the victim purchased approximately $1.4 million in gold bars in three separate transactions and delivered them to individuals at predetermined locations,” a Bradenton police news release said.
The investigation traced the man’s money to Swetaban Patel, a Georgia woman who was arrested in April 2024 and charged with grand theft, according to Bradenton police.
‘Nationwide’ gold bar scam, police say
Patel agreed to help federal authorities build a case against her co-conspirators and detectives identified Syed M. Makki as a second suspect who had been posing as an “agent” for the woman, police say.
“By the time Patel was arrested, Makki was already in custody in Illinois,” the Bradenton Police Department said. “He had been arrested in March 2024 after authorities said he was transporting gold bars collected from other victims through conspirators in Colorado and Missouri.”
Makki was recently sentenced to 15 and a half years in prison, ordered to pay $4,754,000 in restitution and forfeit the gold bars for his part in the scam.
Federal prosecutors say that between 2023 and March 31, 2024, scammers used technology to direct potential victims to call fraudulent phone numbers. Scammers posed as Microsoft employees, banking or government officials and law enforcement officers when the victims called, Bradenton police said.
“Victims were told their identities had been compromised and that their money was no longer safe in financial institutions,” Bradenton police said. “They were instructed to liquidate bank and retirement accounts, purchase gold bars or coins, and turn over those assets for ‘safekeeping’ to individuals involved in the scheme, including Patel. The gold was then transported across state lines.”
According to police, federal prosecutors have found that 12 victims have lost a total of $6 million as part of this fraud scheme.
