Illinois Man Pleads Guilty to Elder Fraud Conspiracy Involving Gold Bars

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Illinois man pleaded guilty in federal court yesterday to taking part in an elder fraud conspiracy in which victims liquidated savings and retirement accounts to buy gold bars, coins, and cash. 

Syed M. Makki, 37, a citizen of India, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Makki admitted that from 2023 to March 2024, he acted as a courier for the conspiracy, in which he picked up gold bullion and cash from victims and delivered it to co-conspirators.

From 2023 through March 31, 2024, conspirators put malware on people’s computers with a phone number to call. When the victims called, they falsely represented themselves as ‘Microsoft’ employees, banking officials, government employees, and law enforcement officers.  Conspirators convinced the victims, who were mostly elderly, that their identities had been compromised, that their money was not safe in banks, and often that victims were assisting law enforcement.

Having established relationships with the victims, the perpetrators had the victims liquidate bank and retirement accounts and buy gold bullion in the form of gold bars or gold coins with the proceeds.  When the gold was delivered to the victims’ houses, conspirators directed the victims to provide the gold for ‘safekeeping’ to a co-conspirator, including Makki.

Sometimes conspirators instructed the victims to package the gold and address it to the ‘Department of Justice’ in the name of a specific person, to further the false impression that victims were dealing with trustworthy officials. Makki and others picked up the gold or cash and then transported it across state lines to co-conspirators.

On March 25 and 26, 2024, Makki picked up 16 gold bars, weighing one kilogram apiece and worth more than $1 million, from victims in Littleton, Co. and Kansas City, Mo.  On March 27, 2024, Makki transported the gold bars to Illinois to deliver them to co-conspirators.  That date, Makki was arrested in possession of the gold bars by a Morgan County, Illinois, Deputy Sheriff and by an Illinois State Highway Patrol Sergeant.

Ten victims identified to date lost over $6 million in the scheme.

Under federal statutes, Makki is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole for conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of Makki will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathleen D. Mahoney. It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department, the Douglas County, Colorado Sheriff’s Department, the Illinois State Highway Patrol, and the Morgan County, Illinois Sheriff’s Department.