Five Admit Aiding Overseas Scammers Who Targeted Elderly Victims

ST. LOUIS - Five people have admitted participating in a scheme that stole millions of dollars from elderly victims in ten states via a tech support scam.

Dariona Lambert, 23, Zhamoniq Stevens, 24, Chintankumar Parekh, 52, Mehulkumar Darji, 42, and Sital Singh, 43, have all pleaded guilty in the last month to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Darji did so Friday morning.

The conspiracy originated overseas, with scammers who contacted elderly victims via telephone calls and electronic messages, falsely claiming that the victims' savings and retirement accounts had been compromised. They told their victims to transfer funds to the conspirators to keep their accounts secure, often via the purchase of gold bars or coins. The overseas conspirators would then send couriers to pick up the gold. Lambert and Stevens admitted being couriers. They were managed by Darji, Parekj and Singh, who admitted being the "handlers" who collected the gold and paid the couriers in cash.

The government believes that the overseas scammers netted $9.3 million from victims.

Scammers told one of the victims, an 82-year-old St. Louis woman, that they were a computer software support team and that her financial accounts had been compromised. They told her she needed to pay money to prevent her funds from being stolen, and transfer money into newly opened accounts before wiring money overseas. They also told her to buy about $250,000 worth of gold bars and sent Lambert to pick up the gold, the plea agreements say. On May 1, 2024, Lambert flew from Gainesville, Florida to St. Louis. Parekh rented a car and drove Lambert to a parking lot near the victim's home, where Lambert switched to an Uber. Lambert was intercepted by law enforcement agents when she arrived at the victim's home. After Parekh was alerted by Lambert that she had been apprehended, he fled to Pittsburgh.

Parekh admitted also working as a handler in gold bar pickups from victims in Yuma and Scottsdale in Arizona; Placentia and La Jolla in California; Largo, Florida; Chapel Hill, N.C.; and Pittsburgh, Penn.. Singh worked a handler in gold bar pickups from victims in Collierville, Tenn.; Universal City, Texas; and Greendale, Wisc.. Darji worked as a handler in gold bar pickups from Scottsdale, Largo and La Jolla, receiving three separate FedEx packages containing gold bars obtained from the Largo victim, it says. Lambert worked as a courier in Scottsdale; Placentia; La Jolla; Largo; Universal City; Hanover, Mass.; and Erie, Penn.. Stevens worked as a courier in gold bar pickups from victims in Yuma; La Jolla; Collierville; Largo; Greendale; Oxnard, Calif.; Long Island, N.Y.; and Cincinnati, Ohio.

Parekh and Darji are in the United States unlawfully. Parekh overstayed his work visa and Darji was removed from the country in 2014.

Lambert, Stevens and Parekh are scheduled to be sentenced in November, and Singh on December 3. Darji's sentencing is set for December 22.

The wire fraud conspiracy charge carries a penalty of up to 30 years in prison, a $1 million fine or both prison and a fine.

This case was investigated by the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations in Tampa, Florida. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gwen Carroll is prosecuting the case.

If someone you know is a victim of a cyber scam, report it to the FBI. You can file the complaint online with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at https://www.ic3.gov or use 1-800-CALL-FBI.