"Agent Roy" From the FBI Wanted Gold Bars in a Meijer Parking Lot. An Illinois Man Is Charged.

The charges

On September 23, 2024, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana announced that a federal grand jury had charged Abdul Mohammed, 31, of Des Plaines, Illinois, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and two counts of wire fraud.

If convicted, he could face up to 60 years in federal prison. An indictment is just an allegation, and he's presumed innocent.

What the indictment says

According to the indictment, Mohammed and others ran a scheme in which conspirators contacted victims (usually elderly) and posed as government agents. They told victims they'd been "compromised" and needed to hand money to federal law enforcement for safekeeping. Victims were told to convert savings and retirement accounts into cash or gold bars.

Then there's "Agent Roy."

• The contact. An elderly victim began receiving unsolicited phone calls, texts and emails from someone claiming to be "Agent Roy" of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
• The story. "Agent Roy" said the victim's computer had been hacked and his personal information compromised. He further said that the victim was involved in a drug crime.
• The threat. The victim was told to withdraw $80,000 from retirement accounts and convert them to gold bars or the funds would be frozen by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
• The first pickup. A conspirator posing as "Agent Roy" met the victim in a Meijer parking lot in Westfield and took the gold.
• The fake letter. On December 8, 2023, someone in the conspiracy emailed the victim a document from "Officer Jason Roy" bearing a fake Department of Justice seal. It warned that if the victim refused to comply with instructions or told anyone, "all your accounts will be frozen."
• The second pickup. A few weeks later, according to the indictment, Mohammed met the victim in the parking lot to collect another $45,000 in cash.

He was a fugitive

When the case was announced, there was an outstanding arrest warrant for Mohammed. U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Myers publicly urged him to contact the FBI and surrender. The release didn't say whether he'd been caught.

Why does this matter to you?

Look at how many channels the scammers used. Calls. Texts. Emails. Fake government letterhead. That's an omnichannel campaign, and it's aimed at scaring people.

Now think about your own outreach. If your texts or calls sound urgent, mysterious or official, you're borrowing the same playbook, whether you mean to or not. Consumers can't tell the difference.

What to do

• Kill the fake urgency. No "final notice" scare tactics.
• Never imply government ties in calls, texts or emails.
• Make it easy to verify you. A real company name, a real callback number, a real website.
• Report impersonators at tips.fbi.gov or 1-800-CALL-FBI.

That's it. The FBI isn't meeting anyone at Meijer.