2 Men Charged in Computer ‘Pop-Up’ Scam Targeting Over 350 Elderly Victims
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Jingbin Jiang, 37, of Staten Island, New York, and Su Jian Liu, 38, of Edmond, Oklahoma, are accused of attempting to steal over $18 million from over 350 people in a scheme that lasted from around 2023 until July this year. Prosecutors said Jiang was arrested on Thursday, while Liu remained at large.
“As alleged, Jingbin Jiang and Su Jian Liu worked together with others to steal the hard-earned money of some [of] our most vulnerable New Yorkers and others around the country,” U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton said in a statement.
“Taking advantage of our elderly after they have worked so hard to save and contributed so much to our city and this country is heartless and despicable,” Clayton added. “These charges, and the efforts of the FBI and the NYPD, should serve as a warning to fraudsters and cybercriminals: New Yorkers want you held accountable for your crimes, and the women and men of our Office are committed to doing so.”
The Scheme
Under the scheme orchestrated by Jiang, Liu, and other scammers, computer pop-ups were disguised to appear as messages from technology companies, banks, or government agencies, and included a phone number to call. When victims called, scammers used a false narrative to convince them that they needed to withdraw large sums of money or purchase large amounts of gold to resolve a supposed problem.According to the complaint, the fabricated issues included viruses infecting victims’ computers or their computers having been hacked and used to conduct serious crimes.
“Some victims were even told that their money would be safely held in the custody of a consumer protection agency like the Federal Trade Commission, and they were sent notices on fake federal government letterhead purporting to bear the signature of a federal government official,” the complaint reads.
Some victims were coerced into buying and transferring cryptocurrency or gift cards to the scammers. Others were instructed to hand over cash or gold to the scheme’s “couriers,” who impersonated authority figures to legitimize the pickup.
“Victims were typically under the impression that this gold and/or cash would then be deposited, on the victims’ behalf, into a new, safe, uncompromised bank account ... that they could access without concern in the future,” the complaint reads.
Jiang and Liu allegedly received information from other members of the scheme about victims who had fallen for the scam. They then decided whether or not to send couriers to pick up the money from those victims. After the couriers picked up the money, the defendants allegedly converted cash and gold into cryptocurrency, which they distributed to other scammers in the scheme, including those located in India and China.
“This alleged conspiracy wielded fear of bankruptcy and arrest to ensure victims complied with the unlawful requests for money,” Christopher G. Raia, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s field office in New York, said in a statement.
Jiang and Liu are charged with one count of wire fraud conspiracy and one count of conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property, according to the Attorney’s Office. The former charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, and the latter, 5 years.
