Scammers posing as bank officials and federal agents are dispatching couriers directly to victims’ homes to collect cash and gold bars, a tactic that has cost people in New England alone more than $26 million since 2023. Nearly all of those losses fell on people over 60. The scheme works because once physical assets leave a victim’s hands, there is no transaction to reverse, no bank fraud department to call, and no digital trail to follow.
Why courier handoffs are replacing wire transfers in impersonation scams
Wire transfers and gift cards have long been the payment methods of choice for fraud rings. Banks and payment processors have built automated flags around those channels, and victims who act quickly can sometimes claw back funds. A courier who drives away with a bag of cash or a box of gold bars removes that entire safety net. The shift explains a pattern federal agencies have flagged across multiple regions: cash losses tied to government impersonation scams nearly doubled from 2022 to 2023, and hit $20 million in the first quarter of 2024 alone, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
The playbook typically unfolds in layers. A victim first receives a call or pop-up alert claiming their computer or bank account has been compromised. A second caller, pretending to represent a financial institution, confirms the supposed breach and urges the victim to liquidate savings into cash or gold to “protect” the funds. A third voice, impersonating a government agent, validates the story and arranges for a courier to collect the assets for so-called safekeeping. The Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General issued its own alert describing “alarming reports” of criminals impersonating SSA OIG agents and other federal law enforcement who request in-person handoffs of cash or gold.
$26 million in losses across 103 New England cases
The FBI’s Boston field office documented 103 instances of couriers picking up illicit cash or gold bars from 2023 through May 2025, totaling more than $26 million in losses. Approximately 98% of those losses were reported by people over 60. That average exceeds $250,000 per case, a figure that reflects how thoroughly victims are coached to drain retirement accounts, sell investments, and convert everything into physical assets before the courier arrives.
The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center published a dedicated public service announcement, designated I-012924-PSA, describing the multi-layer impersonation pattern and warning that couriers are being sent to retrieve cash and precious metals from victims of tech-support and government-impersonation scams. According to that alert, callers frequently claim to be from well-known technology companies, major banks, or federal agencies, and they pressure victims not to tell anyone about the supposed “investigation” while the courier is on the way.
How the courier ruse is sold to victims
Investigators say the criminals rely on a blend of fear and manufactured legitimacy. Victims are often shown fake account dashboards or emailed forged letters bearing agency seals. The impostors may spoof caller ID to display the name of a bank or government office, then transfer the call between multiple “departments” to mimic a real bureaucracy. By the time the idea of a courier is introduced, the victim has already been primed to believe that their money is in imminent danger from hackers or rogue employees inside their bank.
In many cases, the scammers instruct victims to withdraw cash in increments from different branches to avoid suspicion, or to purchase gold bars from dealers and not disclose the true purpose of the purchase. The courier is typically described as a “federal contractor” or “bank security officer” who will inventory the assets and place them in a government-controlled “safe account.” Some victims are told to photograph the cash or gold as proof of cooperation, creating yet another layer of false documentation that reassures them right up until the money disappears.
A nationwide pattern of impersonation
While the Boston figures highlight the scale of the problem in New England, similar tactics have surfaced elsewhere. The FBI’s Portland field office, for example, has warned residents to be wary of callers claiming to be federal agents and arranging in-person pickups of money or valuables, noting that no legitimate agent will ever demand payment or personal delivery of cash to resolve an investigation. Those warnings echo the broader federal guidance that law enforcement and regulators do not ask people to move their savings into “safe” accounts or hand them over to couriers.
How to spot and stop a courier scam
Authorities emphasize a few consistent red flags. Any unsolicited call that demands secrecy, urges immediate withdrawals, or instructs you to buy gold or other precious metals for “protection” should be treated as suspicious. Government agencies and banks say they will not threaten arrest over the phone, direct you to ignore your local branch employees, or send someone to your home to collect cash. If you receive such a call, hang up, look up the official number of the institution on your own, and verify the claim directly.
Victims who have already handed over assets are urged to contact local police and their regional FBI office as quickly as possible, and to file a report with the Internet Crime Complaint Center. Even when stolen cash or gold cannot be recovered, detailed complaints help investigators map the networks behind these courier schemes and may prevent the next person from answering a call that turns their life savings into a bag of untraceable loot.
