Indian National Sentenced to Nine Years in Prison for Elder Fraud Scheme That Took Nearly $1.9 Million in Cash and Gold
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maine announced that Prakashkumar Prajapati, an Indian national, was sentenced on November 5, 2026, in U.S. District Court in Portland, in Cumberland County, Maine, to nine years in prison for conspiring to commit wire fraud. Chief U.S. District Judge Lance E. Walker imposed the sentence and ordered Prajapati, 47, to pay $1,897,386 in restitution. He had pleaded guilty on January 15, 2026.
According to court records, Prajapati conspired with others in a multi-state scheme to defraud at least eight victims in five states, including Maine. Victims received telephone calls from individuals posing as government officials. The imposters instructed victims to withdraw cash and purchase gold to turn over to the government for safekeeping, and then arranged for victims to meet fake government agents to hand over the cash and gold.
As part of the conspiracy, Prajapati directed his co-defendant Bharat Awasarmol to collect gold and cash from victims. Awasarmol was intercepted when FBI agents caught him accepting a package from a victim in Maine. That victim had been instructed by an individual posing as an employee of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to meet Awasarmol and provide him with gold bars.
Prajapati and his coconspirators also collected cash and gold from seven additional victims in New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, and Virginia, all of whom had been deceived by individuals posing as government officials. In total, Prajapati caused $1,897,386 in losses to the victims.
Awasarmol pleaded guilty on December 9, 2025, and faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on the wire fraud conspiracy charge, and up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on a false statement charge. He is scheduled to be sentenced in January 2027. The FBI investigated the case.
The Department of Justice says that between July 2025 and July 2026 it pursued nearly 350 criminal and civil enforcement actions against 712 defendants charged with, or alleged to have, stolen over $4.8 billion from over 700,000 older victims. Anyone who believes they or someone they know has been a victim of elder fraud can call the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-FRAUD-11. (Source: U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maine)
Source: U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maine
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国司法部大楼（GSM固定图库）。APK 摄，CC BY 4.0。 / Photo: U.S. Department of Justice headquarters (GSM file photo). By APK, CC BY 4.0.
