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Key Points
An Indian national has been sentenced to 7.5 years in a US prison for defrauding senior citizens of more than $2 million.
The US Department of Justice labelled the accused as a 'money mule' involved in a major conspiracy of imposter fraud.
This closely follows two other incidents in the US where Indian nationals have been arrested for organising imposter scams.
An Indian national in the US has been sentenced to 7.5 years in federal prison for defrauding senior citizens of more than $2 million. The announcement, made by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) on Wednesday, 10 December 2025, labeled the crime an ‘imposter scam’, which was part of a ‘major conspiracy’.
US Attorney Steven D. Weinhoeft described imposter scams as “international conspiracies often using U.S.-based money mules to meet victims in person to take their money.” The DoJ said that fraudsters impersonate officials, convincing victims to hand over money, assets, and personal or financial details under the garb of protection.
In this case, the accused – 38-year-old Ligneshkumar H. Patel – defrauded 11 elderly victims across five states at the behest of a larger network. Total assets stolen amounted to around $2,231,216. Patel pled guilty to “one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and financial institution fraud and two counts of wire fraud.” A district judge ordered him to pay over $2 million in restitution.
The larger conspiracy targeted nearly 100 victims and stole more than $6.9 million. Patel acted as a mule for the network. The investigation was undertaken by the Homeland Security Investigations and the Edwardsville Police Department.
The incident closely follows another case from Chicago, where two Gujaratis – Jagdishkumar Nandani and Chintan Thakkar – defrauded an elderly woman of more than $653,000 worth of gold in an imposter scam. Prosecutors charged the accused with money laundering over $100,000 and theft of movable property over $100,000. They alleged that the incident was part of a larger international scam.
In another instance, 21-year-old Indian student Dhruv Rajeshbhai Mangukiya and his accomplice Kishan Rajeshkumar Patel were sentenced to over eight years in prison for carrying out widespread elder fraud. The accused were ordered to repay $2.5 million in restitution.
These are the latest in a string of imposter scams and elder fraud schemes undertaken by Indian-origin residents in the US.
Such scams usually involve callers from a call centre contacting victims while impersonating federal officials. They convinced them that they have been targeted by cyberfraud and need to protect their assets. In turn, they convert their savings and assets into gold or cash and hand them over to money mules, who get a commission for each transaction.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecutes these fraudsters aggressively, and anyone who targets elderly victims will face certain justice,” US Attorney Weinhoeft said. [Rh]
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