DENVER (KDVR) — An Illinois man pleaded guilty Monday to taking part in a conspiracy to defraud older adults by having them liquidate savings and retirement accounts to buy gold bars, coins and cash.
One of those victims was an 80-year-old woman who met with Syed Makki, 37, in Littleton in March 2024, according to federal court records.
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Makki pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and admitted to the court that from 2023 to March 2024, he acted as a courier for the fraud scheme. Makki would pick up the gold bullion and cash from victims and deliver it to co-conspirators, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri announced Tuesday.
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According to an indictment filed in September 2024, Makki was just one part of a large scheme targeting older adults across America. The conspirators allegedly put malware on people’s computers and represented themselves as Microsoft employees, then used that connection to convince them that their money was not safe in banks.
The scammers would then convince the victims to liquidate bank and retirement accounts, which were then used as plain cash, to purchase gift cards, or to buy gold bars or coins. The cash, gift cards or gold was then either mailed or given to a conspirator, such as Makki, for “safekeeping,” prosecutors shared in a release…