Federal prosecutors have charged 13 people for running a transnational fraud operation that used fake tech-support and government phone calls to steal from more than 400 older Americans, whose average age was 84. The scheme relied on call centers in the Dominican Republic, a network of U.S.-based runners, and unwitting rideshare drivers to collect cash from victims, at least 50 of whom lived in Massachusetts. The case exposes how elder fraud networks have adapted to use gig-economy infrastructure to move stolen money at scale.
How gig-economy cash collection fueled a four-fold rise in elder scams
The charges filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Massachusetts describe a scheme built on a specific division of labor. Overseas call center operators posed as tech-support agents or government officials, convincing victims their computers were compromised or their identities were at risk. Once a victim agreed to hand over cash, the operation dispatched runners in the United States, sometimes booking rideshare drivers who had no idea they were participating in a crime, to collect envelopes from victims’ homes. That logistical layer turned an old-fashioned phone scam into something far more efficient.
The timing of these charges aligns with a sharp escalation in the broader problem. The Federal Trade Commission reported a more than four-fold increase in reports of impersonation scammers stealing tens and even hundreds of thousands of dollars from older adults, underscoring how phone and online impostors have rapidly expanded their reach. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center has separately warned that tech-support fraudsters often direct victims to ship cash or valuables through commercial carriers, a pattern detailed in a public service announcement about escalating losses. Using rideshare drivers as unwitting couriers adds a new wrinkle: it lets fraud rings avoid relying on a fixed network of accomplices, reducing the chance that any single courier knows enough to expose the operation.
Gig-economy platforms make this possible by offering rapid, on-demand transportation that can be summoned to almost any address. Prosecutors say the fraud network exploited that flexibility, arranging pickups at victims’ homes and drop-offs at intermediary locations where runners could retrieve the cash. Because the rides were booked like any other trip, drivers had little reason to suspect they were ferrying proceeds of a crime, and victims sometimes believed the driver was a legitimate representative of a bank, tech company, or government agency.
Thirteen defendants and a 400-victim trail across the Dominican Republic and Massachusetts
The 13 defendants face charges tied to a scheme that stretched from Dominican Republic call centers to doorsteps across the United States. Prosecutors say the callers used scripts designed to frighten elderly targets into believing they needed immediate help, whether from a supposed Microsoft technician or a Social Security Administration representative. The DOJ’s Elder Justice Initiative identifies both tech-support and government-impersonation calls as among the most common fraud types aimed at older adults, and this case combined both tactics in a single operation.
The scale is striking. More than 400 victims were defrauded, with at least 50 located in Massachusetts alone. The average victim age of 84 means the targets were overwhelmingly people in their eighties and nineties, a demographic that research consistently shows is more likely to answer unsolicited calls and less likely to recognize scripted social-engineering tactics. Many of the victims reportedly lived alone, making them especially vulnerable to high-pressure threats that claimed their bank accounts would be frozen or that they could face arrest if they did not cooperate.
According to prosecutors, callers typically began by asserting that a victim’s computer had been hacked or that criminals were using the victim’s identity to commit financial crimes. After securing remote access to a computer or walking the victim through fake “verification” steps, the scammers claimed that large sums had been mistakenly deposited or that the victim’s savings were at immediate risk. Victims were then instructed to withdraw cash from their bank, hide it in books, boxes, or other household items, and hand it to a person who would arrive to “secure” the funds.
Runners in the United States allegedly coordinated those pickups, sometimes appearing in person and other times relying on rideshare drivers to bridge the last mile. Once the cash changed hands, it was moved quickly through additional couriers and financial channels, making recovery difficult even when victims reported the crime promptly. Authorities say the network’s reliance on multiple layers of intermediaries was deliberate, insulating the call center operators and organizers from direct contact with victims.
The Massachusetts case fits into a wider federal push to confront tech-support and impersonation fraud aimed at seniors. Parallel prosecutions in other districts have targeted similar phone-based operations that used fear, urgency, and technical jargon to separate older adults from their savings. Federal officials have emphasized that these schemes are rarely isolated; rather, they are part of organized networks that test new scripts and logistics methods, then replicate what works across borders.
For families and caregivers, the indictment offers several warning signs to watch for. Unsolicited calls claiming to be from tech companies or government agencies, requests to withdraw large amounts of cash on short notice, instructions to keep the transaction secret, and arrangements for strangers or rideshare drivers to pick up money at home are all red flags. Prosecutors and elder-justice advocates urge older adults to hang up, independently verify any alarming claims using official contact information, and report suspicious calls to law enforcement before any money changes hands.
