Westfield Woman Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Elderly Victim of More Than $500,000

INDIANAPOLIS- Shayna Williams, 51, of Westfield, has pleaded guilty to wire fraud for her role in a six-year scheme that targeted and financially devastated an elderly victim.

According to court documents, Williams was involved in a car accident with an elderly woman. Following the accident, over the course of six years, Williams defrauded the victim and the victim's friend of $672,086 by repeatedly lying about injuries, medical conditions, and other expenses she claimed resulted from the car accident.

Williams falsely asserted that her daughter had suffered severe back injuries in the accident, requiring costly surgery and specialized medical equipment, including a walker and an in-home elevator. She also claimed that she and other family members were undergoing expensive medical treatments and were burdened with substantial medical bills.

To further the scheme, Williams sent text messages to the victim while impersonating insurance agents who were supposedly negotiating with hospitals over the alleged medical bills. These messages falsely promised that the victim would be reimbursed by the insurance company if she paid Williams's expenses. Williams also took steps to disguise her phone number to make the impersonations more convincing.

The financial impact on the victim was severe. The victim took out personal loans, worked as a food delivery driver, obtained a second mortgage on her home, and borrowed money from a friend to pay the fraudulent bills. In total, the victim paid Williams more than $500,000. Despite knowing the victim was incurring significant debt, Williams continued to request additional funds and spent the money on personal expenses, including restaurants, travel, and gambling.

FBI Indianapolis and the Carmel Police Department investigated this case. U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker will sentence Williams at a later date.

U.S. Attorney Wheeler thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam Eakman and Meredith Wood, who are prosecuting this case.

Reporting from consumers about fraud and fraud attempts is critical to law enforcements' efforts to investigate and prosecute schemes targeting older adults. If you or someone you know is aged 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is available from the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833 FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). The hotline is staffed seven days a week from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. [ET]. English, Spanish, and other languages are available. More information about the Department's elder justice efforts can be found on the Department's Elder Justice website.

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