Michigan Coin Dealer Foils $700,000 Social Security ‘Terrorism’ Scam – Widow Targeted, Courier Gets Chocolate Coins Instead, Lands in Jail with ICE Detainer

An alert Michigan coin shop owner just saved a 79-year-old widow from losing her entire life savings in a cruel overseas scam that falsely claimed her Social Security benefits were funding terrorism.

The scheme unfolded in early May when fraudsters – believed to be operating out of India – contacted the Ottawa County widow.

They convinced her that her Social Security number had been linked to terrorism, drug activity, and money laundering. The scammers then ordered her to immediately liquidate nearly $700,000 into gold coins so “law enforcement could track the criminals.”

The panicked widow drove roughly 40 miles to Grand Rapids Coins on 10 Mile Road NE near Rockford and wired the massive sum for 145 one-ounce American Eagle gold coins, according to WOOD TV.

But owner Ben Soldaat immediately smelled a rat.

The woman showed classic scam red flags: extreme urgency, confusion, repeated questions, and almost no real interest in the actual coins. Soldaat has seen this before. He contacted the Kent County Sheriff’s Office right away.

Detectives quickly confirmed it was a sophisticated gold bar scam and set up a sting.

Instead of real gold, an undercover deputy dressed as an elderly woman met the courier at a nearby doughnut shop and handed him a package stuffed with chocolate gold coins.

The courier, 20-year-old Yug B. Chauhan of Elmhurst, Illinois, took the bait. He was arrested on the spot.

Chauhan now faces two serious felony charges in Kent County Circuit Court, obtaining money under false pretenses of $100,000 or more and using a computer to commit a crime. Each count carries up to 20 years in prison.

He is currently locked up in the Kent County Jail on a $100,000 bond, and a federal immigration detainer from ICE. That detainer requests local authorities hold him so federal agents can take custody for potential deportation.

Chauhan told investigators he was taking orders from a man he only knew as “Bhawsh” via WhatsApp and phone calls, many of them conducted in Hindi. He claimed he had never met the man giving the instructions.

The victim got every penny of her money back thanks to Soldaat’s quick thinking and the sharp work of Kent County detectives. She later said she was devastated at how easily she was fooled but hoped her story would protect others.

WOODTV reported:

Scams targeting elderly people are increasing, with more cases centered around requests for gold, officials say. Kent County has had at least two cases in as many months. Often, the fraudsters pose as members of law enforcement or government agencies like the Social Security Administration.

The victim in this case told News 8 the person who called her had a “very good voice” and said that her Social Security number was being used to promote terrorism, drug activity and money laundering.

“And somehow he convinced me,” said the woman, who lives in Ottawa County. “It’s really kind of devastating to realize how easily I was fooled by these fraudsters.”

A similar case in Ada Township led to the weekend arrests of two people from out of state. They’re accused of posing as federal agents and trying to get an elderly couple to convert $250,000 into gold, court records show. They “admitted to committing similar crimes throughout the Midwest over the past four months,” court records show.

Other recent cases include a multimillion-dollar gold scam targeting elderly people across Texas involving Canadian gold maple leaf coins, law enforcement there reported.

“It’s a nationwide trend,” Kent County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Scott Dietrich said. “A lot of times, these elderly people are convinced the scam is real.

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