‘Overstayed Student Visa, Duped Elderly’: Indian Gets 18-Yr Jail In US For Scamming Senior Citizens

An Indian national, Atharva Shailesh Sathawane, who overstayed his student visa in the United States has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for his role in a multi-million-dollar fraud scheme that targeted elderly Americans, federal prosecutors said.

While the sentencing was announced last month, the case has recently drawn renewed attention online after right-wing commentator Nick Sortor highlighted it in a post on X, linking it to the broader US immigration debate.

“An Indian illegal brought in under Biden has just been sentenced to 18 YEARS in prison for stealing $15 MILLION from elderly victims They keep telling us these people come for a better life. BS. In reality, they come to steal from grandma,” Nick Sortor said in a post on X.

In a statement issued on January 26, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida said Atharva Shailesh Sathawane, 23, was convicted by a jury of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was described as a courier in an international scam that persuaded senior citizens to liquidate retirement savings into cash and gold, which were then collected and funneled to co-conspirators.

According to court documents and trial evidence, Sathawane travelled to victims’ homes to collect large quantities of cash and gold after they were misled into believing their assets were at risk. Over a four-month period, he made at least 33 such trips, primarily in Florida but also in Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Jersey and New York.

Prosecutors said he personally took and laundered $6,615,484.66 in cash and gold and attempted to collect an additional $1.36 million before being stopped. His arrest followed an undercover operation after a suspicious victim alerted law enforcement. A forensic examination of his cellphone confirmed his involvement in the wider fraud network, some members of which were allegedly operating from India.

US Attorney John P Heekin said elder fraud schemes were prevalent in Florida due to its large retiree population and vowed aggressive prosecution. The case was investigated jointly by the Gainesville Police Department, the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation.

FBI Jacksonville Special Agent in Charge Jason Carley warned that “gold bar scams” were a growing trend, noting that Florida victims alone lost over $33 million last year to similar schemes.

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