In a significant development in Portland, Oregon, federal prosecutors have charged 27-year-old Biao Lin, a Chinese national living in Brooklyn, New York, with running a multi-state gold bar scam. Authorities allege that Lin attempted to steal gold bars worth over $460,000 from an 80-year-old woman, leading to his arrest by the FBI on October 4th. Just a few days later, he is facing federal fraud charges and remains in custody as proceedings continue. The couple involved in this scam reportedly lost more than $3 million in gold bars since June.
The FBI has been actively investigating scams aimed at seniors across the nation, and earlier this year, two individuals were arrested in Oregon for similar crimes. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Kerin highlighted how these schemes often involve con artists hacking into victims’ computers and posing as government officials who claim they need to protect the victims’ personal assets. The perpetrators trick victims into exchanging their money for gold, falsely assuring them that their assets will be secured by the Treasury Department.
Kerin also mentioned that Lin may have entered the U.S. illegally in 2019 and is currently seeking legal status. Upon his arrest, he purportedly told investigators about a stranger who approached him at a public library in New York City a week earlier, offering him $200 to “fly somewhere to pick something up,” which he accepted.
However, this wasn’t Lin’s first alleged offense. Earlier this year, he had already taken gold bars valued at $580,000 from another alleged victim on the East Coast. After traveling from the East Coast to Portland, he was apprehended while preparing to collect additional gold bars from the elderly couple. The Portland federal court has initiated criminal proceedings against him for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.
Kerin emphasized the predatory nature of this criminal organization, likening it to a swarm of locusts that targets vulnerable populations across the country. He described the scam as both exploitative and damaging, with far-reaching implications.
The breakthrough that led to Lin’s arrest came after the victimized woman purchased gold bars worth over $460,000 on October 1st and confided in her son about the transaction. The family subsequently reported the incident to their local FBI office. The elderly couple, aged 86 and 93, claimed they had been following the instructions of a person named “Michael Lewis” since June, resulting in their substantial losses.
Kerin detailed the process, explaining that under “Lewis’s” direction, the woman made several purchases of gold bars worth hundreds of thousands of dollars and even shared pictures to confirm these transactions. After each collection, the woman would receive a fake check from the U.S. Treasury that purportedly reflected the value of the gold bars.
