NH Retiree Bilked For Millions In Gold; Exchange Suspect Arrested By Concord Detectives

CONCORD, NH — With the help of federal investigators, Concord police detectives may have arrested a suspect involved in a multi-million dollar gold theft targeting a Granite State retiree who lost nearly their entire life savings.

Just after 10:45 a.m. on Monday, detectives were assigned to assist the Federal Bureau of Investigation in a “sophisticated and multi-layered” gold scam involving millions of dollars. Between February and May, according to an affidavit, a retiree in their early 70s was targeted by scammers posing as Microsoft security personnel, a bank fraud specialist, and a Federal Reserve System officer to gain unauthorized access to their accounts. The victim was told by a technician China hacked his computer, there was a fraudulent charge on his credit card, and their Social Security number was compromised, a detective noted.

“As the scheme progressed,” they stated, “(the victim) was advised that (their) identity was stolen and that (they) had to follow all instructions in order to avoid prosecution.”

The victim was told other accounts were being opened in their name and they were involved in criminal activity in Asia. Their identity and accounts were at risk, the scammers reportedly stated.

Editor's note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Concord Police Department and does not indicate a conviction. This link explains the removal request process for New Hampshire Patch police reports.

The victim followed the scammers’ instructions and purchased 48 gold bars, all valued at $3.1 million, online from Boston Bullion in Burlington, Massachusetts, an affidavit stated. Four “couriers” then picked up the gold bars. The exchanges were done at the Shell gas station at 24 Loudon Road on Feb. 24; two were made at the 242 Sheep Davis Road Shell gas station on March 13 and March 18; and on April 8 at Hannaford at 73 Fort Eddy Road.

“(The victim) believed the ‘undercover officer’ was someone assisting with his ‘case’,” the detective wrote. “In reality, the ‘undercover officer’ was a co-conspirator in a wire fraud scheme and stole (the victim’s) assets. (The) $3.1 million loss was essentially (their) life savings.”

The FBI began investigating the incident on May 1 and, with the victim’s consent, began communicating with the scammers.

On Monday, an FBI agent, assuming the victim’s identity, agreed to meet with a “courier” in the parking lot of Hannaford, who was accused of attempting to pick up $250,000 in gold bars. During the sting, the meetup location changed, and the detective stated they were communicating with a “call center” and not the “courier.” The person at the call center “spoke with an Indian accent,” the report stated. Two city detectives, working in a plainclothes capacity, coordinated with the FBI agents and task force officers. The exchange location was then changed to CVS at 157 Loudon Road. The detectives were asked to check if there were any individuals of Indian or Asian descent or out-of-state license plates in the store’s parking lot.

A detective spotted a silver 2020 Toyota RAV4 with Connecticut plates in the parking lot with an Asian driver who was later identified as Ji Li, 40, with a last known address of Clinton Avenue in Middletown, Connecticut. The detective said Li “exited this vehicle to smoke a cigarette with headphones in” and they continued to surveil him during communications with the FBI.

To ensure Li was the suspect, the FBI agent shifted the meeting location to Burger King, right next door, and after doing so, Li looked toward the restaurant and began walking in that direction, the affidavit said. He was also accused of “constantly looking around” and “taking pictures” while walking toward Burger King.

“Given the Asian male’s behavior,” the detective wrote, “it appeared that it was clear that the Asian male had received the information that the meeting location had changed to the Burger King parking lot.”

Li was stopped in the parking lot and arrested on a felony conspiracy to commit theft by deception charge. He was identified via a New York driver’s license, the report stated. Li was held on preventative detention.

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