A jury has convicted Amit Bhanwala-Singh, 32, for his role in a fraud scheme that tricked a 64-year-old woman into handing over nearly $500,000 in cash and gold, according to the Washoe County District Attorney’s Office.
Bhanwala-Singh was found guilty of exploitation of an older person and attempted obtaining money under false pretenses after investigators linked him to a scam targeting the victim through deceptive messages.
Authorities said the victim initially received a fraudulent text message posing as Amazon. When she called the phone number included in the message, a co-conspirator pretending to be a federal agent told her she was under investigation for money laundering.
The scammers convinced the woman to cooperate by turning over her money and valuables as part of the supposed investigation. Investigators say she delivered cash and gold on three separate occasions to locations across California, believing the assets would be returned once the investigation concluded.
After the third delivery, the victim became suspicious when she was instructed to withdraw additional funds from her retirement account. She contacted police in Truckee, which launched an investigation.
Authorities later identified Bhanwala-Singh’s vehicle, and the victim was able to recognize him as one of the individuals involved in the scheme.
Officers from the Truckee Police Department coordinated with the Reno Police Department and the United States Secret Service to conduct a sting operation. The operation took place after the victim traveled to Reno to purchase additional gold connected to the scam.
During the sting, Bhanwala-Singh and a co-defendant, Anil Kumar, were arrested.
Bhanwala-Singh now faces up to 30 years in prison and is scheduled to be sentenced on April 23. Kumar is expected to stand trial on July 27.
