New York man accused of scamming Massachusetts woman out of thousands of dollars

LUDLOW — Chief Michael Brennan reports that the Ludlow Police Department arrested and charged a New York man in connection with a scam that stole thousands of dollars from an elderly resident.

On June 21st, the Ludlow Police Department was notified that an elderly Ludlow resident had been the victim of a fraud scheme after being contacted by individuals claiming she had been charged a large sum of money for a fraudulent purchase.

The individuals contacted the victim by phone, posing as Federal Trade Commission Agents. The victim, while attempting to correct the charge, was told by the scammers that her finances had been compromised and was instructed not to notify local law enforcement.

The victim was persuaded to provide personal identifying information and withdraw a large sum of cash, which she then gave to an individual posing as a federal agent. The exchange took place on June 17th.

The scammer then attempted to fraudulently obtain additional funds from the victim under the false promise that her funds would be returned by the federal government. The scammers provided photos of government-issued checks, which were later determined to be fraudulent, to the victim in an effort to further convince her of their official government affiliation.

On June 21st, the victim contacted the Ludlow Police Department after realizing she had been scammed.

Members of the Ludlow Police Detective Bureau immediately began an investigation and learned that the suspect was actively arranging to collect the additional funds. On June 22nd, detectives coordinated with the victim to contact and arrest the suspect, identified as 43-year-old Suqi Chen of Flushing, New York.

Chen was arrested and charged with:

• Larceny Over $1,200 by False Pretense
• Larceny from a Person Age 65 or Older
• Extortion of a Police Officer (two counts)
• Attempted Larceny from a Person Age 60 or Older/Disabled
• Intimidation of a Witness, Juror, Police Officer, or Court Official
• Conspiracy
• Permitting Abuse of an Elderly or Disabled Person
• Impersonating a Police Officer
• Identity Fraud
• Forgery of a Document (three counts)
• Uttering a False Writing (three counts)

He was taken to Palmer District Court and held on $50,000 bail.

Residents who believe they may have fallen victim to a scam or who believe they may be communicating with scammers are encouraged to immediately contact the Ludlow Police Department at 413-583-8305.

Ludlow Police would like to remind residents of the following scam safety tips: 

• Never share personal information over the phone.
• Never respond to unknown phone numbers.
• Don’t click on any hyperlinks.
• Report and block numbers that appear to be scams.
• Scammers often tell you to pay using difficult-to-recover payment methods, including cash, gift cards, wire transfers, or cryptocurrency. 
• Scammers pretend to be from an organization you know or a government-affiliated organization.

 For more info and tips, click here. 

These are allegations. All suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.