NY, New Haven Man Indicted In Alleged Grandparents Scam: Feds

PROVIDENCE, RI —A federal grand jury indicted a man who took up residence in New Haven where it's alleged he ran a scam targeting elderly grandparents, U.S. Attorney for RI, Zachary A. Cunha announced Monday.

Jean-Richard Audate, 35, of Jamaica, Queens, with addresses in New Haven and Brookline, MA, is accused of posing on the telephone as the grandchild or other family member of elderly victims. He'd convince victims that their family member was in jail in another state and needed cash right away, it's alleged in the indictment. They were told to send cash payments for legal fees via FedEx or UPS, federal prosecutors said.

The indictment charges Audate with conspiracy to commit mail fraud, three counts of mail fraud, and aggravated identity theft.

According to the Justice Department, Audate allegedly took up "temporary residence" in New Haven and Brookline, where he allegedly retrieved packages containing cash sent by grandparent scam victims in several states.

According to information presented to the court, beginning in January 2021, the New Haven Police Department starting getting reports from out-of-state police departments, including departments in Rhode Island, about the scam.

Packages with cash were sent to New Haven addresses, locations right next to each other, including an Airbnb, prosecutors said. Federal authorities said that Audate would go to those addresses and pick up the packages.

New Haven police and the FBI "determined" the packages "contained between as $7,900 and $150,000 in cash," according to the U.S. Attorney.

Audate was arraigned in U.S. District Court in Providence Feb. 24 and released on $10,000 unsecured bond, according to a statement from Cunha.