The federal government has charged 13 people in connection with a transnational elder fraud scheme that stole over $5 million from 400 seniors.
The criminals would trick elderly victims into believing that their grandchildren or other close family members were in trouble and needed money. The call center was based in the Dominican Republic.
In total, the investigation identified over 400 victims with an average age of 84, including at least 50 in Massachusetts, and more than $5 million in losses.
Oscar Manuel Castanos Garcia ran the call center, according to charging documents.
When those charged received the money, they allegedly laundered their illicit proceeds back to the Dominican Republic. Castanos Garcia allegedly oversaw call centers in the Dominican Republic, where he employed co-conspirators who spoke English and carried out what are commonly known as “grandparent scams.”
The call center would call victims and pretend to be a grandson or granddaughter who was in an accident.
Then, a “Closer” would allegedly follow up with another call, pretending to be their grandchild’s attorney, asking for a sum of money to pay for their grandchild’s fees due to the accident.
Castanos Garcia allegedly ran these call center locations where he employed, supervised, instructed and paid the employees. As alleged in the indictment, callers for Castanos Garcia’s call centers would instruct elderly victims to provide cash to “runners” in the United States.
Most often, the callers would instruct victims to give the packages with cash to rideshare drivers who were ordered to the victim’s house by a runner. The runners would then have the unsuspecting rideshare drivers deliver the packages to the runners at nearby locations. In some cases, the callers would direct the victims to ship packages of cash to specified addresses via mail or commercial carriers.
Often times, the call center would allegedly call victims again and ask for additional funds for their grandchildren, sometimes two or three additional times. For example, callers allegedly would claim that there had been a “mix up” or that a “pregnant women’s baby was lost in the crash.”
At times, co-conspirators would allegedly order unwitting rideshare drivers to drive the elderly victims to the bank to withdraw additional funds.
Then, the runners would deposit the victim's money into bank accounts and other co-conspirators in New York and elsewhere.
Operators of the scheme relied on money launderers in the United States and the Dominican Republic to transmit proceeds from victims in the United States to Castanos Garcia and others in the Dominican Republic.
Members of the public who believe they may be victims of this case, or other elder fraud scams, should contact USAMA.VictimAssistance@usdoj.gov or call 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324). Suspected fraud can also be reported on the FBI’s IC3 Elder Fraud Complaint Center.
The charge of Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud and Wire Fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the loss to the victim. The charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $500,000 or twice the amount of laundered funds, whichever is greater.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement.
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