YOUNGSTOWN, OH — Two Kent State University students are in custody following their arrests in a federal cyberfraud probe that targeted elderly victims across multiple states.
Touhedul Tuhin, 25, and Iftekhar Latif Nieon, 23, were arrested by FBI agents on Tuesday on a federal criminal complaint issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York. The pair are accused of acting as “money mules” in a sophisticated scam operation that defrauded elderly individuals of more than $100,000.
Both men face charges of wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
How the Scheme Worked
According to court documents, the scam involved fake government agents and tech support representatives contacting elderly victims through email or phone. Victims were told they owed money or had fraudulent activity on their accounts and were pressured into withdrawing large sums of cash. Tuhin and Nieon are accused of physically collecting the money under false pretenses.
In Orchard Park, NY, a 68-year-old man was duped by someone posing as a Federal Trade Commission agent. He handed over $40,000 in cash to Tuhin, whom he later identified in a photo lineup.
An 81-year-old in Western New York lost $38,000 after remote access to his computer faked a Microsoft Defender refund. He was convinced to hand over the cash to correct the supposed mistake.
An 82-year-old from Pepper Pike, OH, lost $15,000 after a fake PayPal representative claimed there was an error in his account.
Key Evidence Ties to Kent
The investigation traced vehicles and phone records linking both men to multiple scam incidents. A car registered to Tuhin appeared at two crime scenes, and phone location data placed Nieon at multiple fraud locations. Nieon also received over $55,000 in unexplained cash deposits, despite claiming no income.
Court Appearance
Tuhin and Nieon appeared separately before U.S. Magistrate Judge Carmen E. Henderson, who ordered both to remain in custody until further hearings. The case remains under investigation by the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office.
