FRAUDSTER SENTENCED TO EIGHTEEN YEARS IN PRISON AFTER TAKING AND LAUNDERING MILLIONS FROM ELDERLY VICTIMS

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA – Atharva Shailesh Sathawane, 23, of India, was sentenced to 18 years in prison after a jury previously found him guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “Elder fraud schemes like this one are taking place every day in every state, but especially in Florida due to our large population of retirees, so it is of critical importance that we educate the public of these threats to prevent these fraudsters from continuing to victimize our seniors. I applaud the excellent investigative work by our state and federal law enforcement partners to uncover and dismantle this complex, international fraud scheme, which was made possible by the brave victims who came forward to report the fraud in the first place. Our hope is that these elder fraud schemes never occur, but the talented prosecutors in my office will aggressively pursue the heinous fraudsters, like this defendant, and seek maximum punishments when we catch them.”

Trial evidence and court documents showed that the defendant, an illegal alien who had overstayed his student visa, was a courier in an international fraud scheme that targeted elderly victims. As part of the scheme, multiple elderly victims were convinced to liquidate their retirement accounts to obtain cash, gold, or both. The defendant would travel to each victim to take possession of large quantities of their cash and gold, and he would then deliver those fraudulently obtained proceeds to his co-conspirators, some of whom were orchestrating the fraud scheme from India.

After an elderly victim suspected he was being defrauded, he notified law enforcement who coordinated an undercover operation. The defendant was arrested upon his arrival at the elderly victim’s residence to pick up more gold. A subsequent search of the defendant’s cellular phone confirmed his involvement in the extensive elder fraud scheme.  Over a 4-month period, the defendant made at least 33 trips to retrieve gold and cash from the elderly victims.  Forensic analysis of the defendant’s phone revealed that he primarily operated in Florida, but he also traveled to Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Jersey, and New York to retrieve cash and gold from elderly victims of this fraud scheme and deliver those proceeds to other co-conspirators.  As a result of the fraud scheme, numerous elderly American citizens lost their entire life savings or experienced substantial financial hardship.

The defendant personally took, and then laundered, $6,615,484.66 in cash and gold from the elderly victims. The defendant attempted to pick up an additional $1,363,395.98 in gold from two elderly victims, but was foiled by the intervention of a concerned friend of a victim in one instance, and by his arrest by law enforcement on the second attempt.

“I commend our detectives for their tireless work in stopping scammers,” said Chief Nelson Moya, Gainesville Police Department. “We will not tolerate criminals who prey on our vulnerable citizens.”

“If anyone tells you to buy gold and hand it over to a stranger, it is not an investment, it is a scam,” said FBI Jacksonville Special Agent in Charge Jason Carley. “Mr. Sathawane preyed on his victims’ trust and fear, convincing them to turn over their life savings in gold. Unfortunately, this is a growing trend. In Florida alone, victims lost more than 33 million dollars last year just to gold bar scams. This sentencing is just one step toward justice for the victims in this scheme and the FBI’s efforts to stop this from happening over and over again.”

“This case underscores the devastating impact of international fraud schemes targeting our elderly citizens,” said Ron Loecker, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation, Florida Field Office. “The defendant’s actions robbed victims of their life savings and financial security. This case highlights the benefits to everyday Americans when local and federal law enforcement work hand in hand to bring criminals to justice and disrupt a network that preyed on the most vulnerable.”

The case involved a joint investigation by the Gainesville Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam Hapner.

If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has experienced financial fraud, experienced professionals are standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This Justice Department hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, can provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. English, Spanish, and other languages are available.

More information about the department’s efforts to help American seniors is available at www.justice.gov/elderjustice. For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts visit www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Elder fraud complaints can be filed with the FTC at www.reportfraud.ftc.gov/ or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Justice Department provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office for Victims of Crime, at www.ovc.gov.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General.  To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndfl.