Five people are now facing federal charges in connection to an alleged $8 million scam targeting elderly victims across at least ten states, including here in St. Louis.
According to the indictment, Dariona Lambert, 22, Zhamoniq Stevens, 23, Chintankumar Parekh, 51, Mehul Darji, 41, and Sital Singh, 42, are charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Prosecutors say the group posed as tech support representatives, telling seniors their bank and retirement accounts had been compromised. Victims were instructed to move their money to “secure” it. In several cases, that meant purchasing gold bars that were later picked up by couriers.
An 82-year-old St. Louis woman is among the victims. Authorities say she was persuaded to transfer funds, wire money overseas, and purchase approximately $250,000 in gold bars before law enforcement intervened.
Investigators allege Lambert and Stevens acted as couriers, while others coordinated transportation and distribution of the gold. One of the individuals charged is identified as a mail carrier.
