SAN DIEGO – A 70-year-old retiree from Carlsbad was scammed out of her life savings in a $1.49 million Bitcoin ATM scam, authorities announced today.
Xilin Sun, 33, made his first appearance in federal court today to face charges that he participated in a multinational fraud conspiracy targeting the elderly victim.
According to a complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, San Diego Elder Justice Task Force learned of the fraud scheme after the victim reported to Carlsbad police that she was duped over a period of months by fraudsters posing as government, bank and tech-support employees.
The victim said she was using her computer when a pop-up window appeared, advising her to call for help because her computer had been hacked. After making the call, she was transferred through a series of co-conspirators pretending to work in tech support who told her to download software on her computer.
The victim was also told her personal identifying and bank account information were compromised and was subsequently referred to co-conspirators posing as employees from her financial institutions. The victim was then told she needed to “secure” her assets. At the direction of someone posing as a bank employee, she deposited approximately $55,700 into Bitcoin ATMs located in North County San Diego.
The complaint further describes how once the scammers discovered the victim had substantial savings, they convinced her she could safeguard her funds by obtaining gold bars and sending them to the U.S. treasury, which would create a locker under her name. Over the course of two months, the victim sent approximately $1,335,000 via three separate wire transfers to a precious metal business located in San Marcos, California.
The scammers then convinced the victim to send an additional $100,000 worth of gold, but this time, the victim contacted the FBI, which set up a controlled delivery of a package made to look like it contained $100,000 in gold. The package was handed over to one of the conspirators, who was then followed by task force agents.
The first conspirator handed the package to a second conspirator, later identified as Sun, who was stopped by the California Highway Patrol. In Sun’s vehicle, investigators located the fake gold package and the victim’s receipt. Agents also located additional evidence linking Sun to the victim, including photos of the fake gold the victim had sent to the conspirators over the phone, a copy of an invoice, and the receipt for the gold.
“If you think you may have been scammed, report it immediately,” said U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath. “These schemes are organized by sophisticated global networks with the ability to fool even the most savvy computer users. But if victims report quickly, we have a better chance of catching the scammers and retrieving stolen money.”
“Thousands of people fall victim to elder fraud every year. Many do not report the fraud because they are embarrassed or afraid; however, the best course of action is to report scams as early as possible,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge John Kim. “The San Diego Elder Justice Task Force is dedicated to relentlessly pursuing criminals who prey on innocent individuals for personal gain.”
This case was investigated by the San Diego Elder Justice Task Force and its member agencies, including the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, San Diego County District Attorney’s Office, and Carlsbad Police Department.
Sun is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, and is currently being held without bail.
If convicted, Sun faces up to 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million.
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Key Facts
- State: California
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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