A crew of middlemen who helped turn seniors’ life savings into gold bars and overseas wire transfers are heading to federal prison, after prosecutors in St. Louis announced sentences in a multimillion-dollar tech-support scam that stretched across at least ten states. The five defendants served as couriers and handlers, shuttling cash and gold from elderly victims to overseas bosses. Judges handed down prison terms ranging from 18 months to four years and ordered millions of dollars in restitution.
Sentences and Restitution
Sital Singh, 43, received a four-year prison sentence and was ordered to repay $6.6 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Chintankumar Parekh and Mehulkumar Darji were also sentenced to four-year terms, while Dariona Lambert was given two years and Zhamoniq Stevens received 18 months.
All five pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and were ordered to pay restitution tied to a scheme that prosecutors say pulled in about $9.3 million from elderly victims in multiple states.
How the Scheme Worked
According to prosecutors, overseas callers pretended to be tech-support workers or bank representatives and persuaded seniors to move their money or buy gold bars as a supposed safeguard against fraud. In reality, the callers were the fraud.
In one especially brazen case, an 82-year-old St. Louis woman was told to purchase roughly $250,000 in gold. Dariona Lambert flew to St. Louis on May 1, 2024, to collect the gold, but was intercepted at the victim’s home, as reported by RiverBender. After Lambert alerted a handler that she had been caught, authorities say the handler fled to Pittsburgh.
"Sital Singh and his co-conspirators in the U.S. and overseas are parasites," Special Agent in Charge Chris Crocker said in a statement to the U.S. Attorney's Office, summing up the government’s view of a crew that preyed on retirees who thought they were protecting their nest eggs.
Investigation and Prosecution
The case was investigated by the FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations in Tampa, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Gwen Carroll handled the prosecution, according to Federal Newswire. Prosecutors say the overseas ring likely netted about $9.3 million from victims overall.
Authorities also noted that Parekh and Darji are unlawfully present in the United States and will be deported after serving their prison sentences. The wire-fraud conspiracy charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine, although judges imposed shorter specific terms in these cases.
How to Report Scams
Federal officials are urging anyone who suspects that they or an older relative has been targeted by a similar scheme to act quickly and hang on to records of calls, emails, and financial transactions. Complaints can be filed online with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center or by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI.
Victims and family members can also reach out to local law enforcement or the U.S. Attorney’s Office for guidance on preserving evidence so it can be used in future prosecutions.
