Gujarati man gets over 9 years in US jail for elderly fraud scam; attorney cites extreme poverty

A Gujarati man, Shreyas Baldevbhai Chaudhary, has received a sentence of over nine years in federal prison for orchestrating a significant financial fraud scheme that preyed on elderly individuals in the United States. A US district court in Cleveland handed down the 110-month sentence, which also includes an order for Chaudhary to pay over $5.1 million in restitution.

The elaborate scam, which ran from December 2022 to December 2023, involved targeting victims through deceptive pop-up ads and phone calls. Perpetrators would freeze victims' computers, claiming identity theft, and then instruct them to purchase gift cards or withdraw substantial amounts of cash. The FBI became involved when a bank flagged a suspicious transaction, leading to the arrest of one of Chaudhary's associates, Nitinkumar Raval, who was later sentenced to federal prison.

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Mr Chaudary was born and raised in the rural neighborhood of Ampura, in the state of Gujarat, India. He grew up in extreme poverty -- water was scarce, his house was in poor condition, and he slept on a mattress on the floor.

Chaudhary, who operated under the alias 'Al Capone,' directed couriers to collect money from victims across the US. His attorney argued for leniency, detailing Chaudhary's impoverished childhood in Gujarat, India. The defense highlighted his lack of formal education beyond the 10th grade, his limited English proficiency, and a history of extreme poverty, including scarce water resources and sleeping on a floor mattress, to suggest these circumstances influenced his decision to commit financial crimes.

In addition to Chaudhary's sentence, his aide Trusha Chaudhary received five years of probation and was ordered to pay $343,641 in restitution. The case underscores the devastating impact of elder fraud and the complex factors that can contribute to criminal behavior.

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Mr Chaudhary only has a 10th-grade education and speaks very little English. Mr Chaudhary obtained his first job at twenty-two years of age and earned only $10.49 per month.