The Inspector General for the Social Security Administration, Gail S. Ennis, is announcing the arraignment of two individuals in a significant Social Security imposter telephone scam case. Chaitali Dave, 36, and Mehulkumar Patel, 36, both of Lexington, South Carolina are facing Federal charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering in the Northern District of Georgia. Patel was arraigned on June 19, and Dave was arraigned today. This husband and wife are alleged to have retrieved over $400,000 from at least 24 victims of Social Security and tech support scam phone calls.
According to the indictment, Patel and Dave are members of a network based in India that defrauded U.S. residents, including senior citizens, by using technical support and Social Security number scams. The scheme often involved call center employees pretending to be government officials. These scammers deceived victims by telling them their Social Security numbers were involved in criminal activity. They threatened arrest and loss of assets if the victims did not send funds via FedEx and UPS.