A months-long gold scam in Ohio has led to the arrest of two men after a 78-year-old woman was allegedly tricked into handing over nearly $200,000 worth of gold while believing she was cooperating with federal authorities.
Police have identified the suspects as Manan Shah and Ankit Gupta, who were earlier described as Pennsylvania-based couriers. The case came to light after the Westlake Police Department conducted a covert operation and released footage from the arrest.
According to investigators, the fraud started in August 2025 when the woman encountered a pop-up message on her home computer claiming her system had been hacked.
The alert provided a phone number allegedly linked to an FBI agent.
When she called the number, she was pulled into an elaborate deception involving claims of cyberattacks, compromised accounts, and ongoing federal investigations. At one point, she was even told that an undercover agent had died during the case.
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The woman later told authorities that she believed she was genuinely speaking to the FBI.
Victim told to buy gold for ‘safekeeping’
As the scam progressed, the caller allegedly instructed her to withdraw money and purchase gold, claiming it would be held safely by the government as part of the investigation.
“I thought I was speaking to FBI,” she later said, reflecting on how convincing the impersonation had been.
Over several months, individuals posing as federal agents reportedly visited her home in Westlake to collect the gold. In total, she lost nearly $200,000 in gold assets before authorities intervened.
The scam eventually came under scrutiny when a local gold store reportedly became suspicious, prompting law enforcement involvement. Around the same time, the woman was allegedly pressured further, including being told she needed to hand over a large portion of her retirement savings.
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Westlake Police then took control of the communication and began monitoring the suspects.
Undercover sting leads to arrests
Detectives arranged a controlled pickup using imitation gold, forged documentation, and staged receipts to maintain the illusion for the suspects. Surveillance tools, including drones, were used to track the couriers as they arrived for the collection.
Police arrested Shah and Gupta without incident during the operation.
In interrogation footage released by authorities, both men denied knowledge of the scam. They claimed they were simply instructed to collect packages and were unaware they were participating in fraud.
