An Indian man in the US on a student visa has been convicted of a major scam targeting senior citizens.
Venkateswara Chagamredhi, 27, an Indian man living in Texas on a student visa, was convicted of defrauding a 79-year-old Vietnam veteran in Delaware County. In August 2025, the elderly man called a phone number he believed to be Microsoft support.
He was told that criminal activity had been detected on his computer and a federal officer would contact him with further advice.Another man called him, pretending to be a federal officer and providing a fake badge number. The fake federal officer told the victim that his identity was stolen and given to criminals, which led to him being “investigated,” and that his identity was used to commit federal crimes.The victim was told that his money needed to be converted into gold and submitted to the Treasury. The victim complied and handed over a large amount of gold to a fake officer.When the victim was contacted again for more money, he contacted a family member who told him that he was being scammed and that no government department would ask for gold from any individual. This time, Chagamreddy came to receive the package and was arrested.
Evidence presented to the jury showed he had $500 in cash, a cell phone and 23 ounces of gold in the car.
Who is Venkateswara Chagamreddy? What is his gold scam?
While a major gold scam had already appeared on law enforcement’s radar, investigators said Chagamreddy was working with another co-conspirator. He was the one who was traveling across the states collecting packages from the victims. For example, when he was arrested, his letters proved that he was in contact with several elderly victims.
He even flew from Austin to North Carolina where he obtained the gold and then turned it over to one of the conspirators.On his travels, he made a habit of providing status updates, location, and fuel levels to his co-conspirator.When he was arrested, Chagamreddy told law enforcement that he was in the United States on a student visa and was at risk of deportation after being suspended from school. He said he recently traveled out of state to attend a different college, and when he returned, the gold was in his car.
