FBI agents arrested a man for allegedly defrauding a 76-year-old man in Springdale Township of $130,000.
Zhudi Chen is facing charges of theft and financial exploitation of an older adult.
According to the criminal complaint, scammers phoned the victim and claimed to be investigating fraud at PNC Bank. According to police, they told the victim that to apprehend the suspect who had access to it, he needed to liquidate his brokerage account, which cost him $130,000.
The victim reported the crime to the authorities in late September, and the scammers promptly demanded more than $103,000 in gold.
According to the criminal complaint, Chen was caught by FBI agents after an undercover operation when he arrived at the victim’s house to collect the gold.
Police claim that Chen hails from New York and has no connection to either the victim or the Pittsburgh area. According to the criminal complaint, Chen told police that he had previously been caught by Homeland Security Investigations after illegally crossing the border.
Allegheny County Jail is currently imprisoning Chen.