Six Pickups in Nine Days: Florida Courier Gets 27 Months in Elder Fraud Scheme

On June 23, 2026, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida announced that Xin Liu, 40, a Chinese national living in Apopka, Florida, was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison for her part in an elder fraud scheme.

What she did

According to court records, Liu was in the United States on an H-1B visa. She took part in a fraud scheme that used phone calls and electronic messages to target elderly victims.

She also did the driving.

• Between July 22 and July 30, 2025, she drove to at least six locations across Florida to pick up money from victims.
• One victim lived in an assisted living community for seniors in Gainesville.
• In total, she tried to pick up more than $95,000 from victims.
• She got paid with a cut of the stolen money.

The release says her actions created substantial financial hardship for at least one elderly victim.

Read that again. Six pickups. Nine days. A senior living facility.

Who investigated

This one was a team effort. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), the Manatee County Sheriff's Office and the Gainesville Police Department all worked it.

Manatee County Sheriff Rick Wells described the criminals as "impersonating federal agents to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars." U.S. Attorney John P. Heekin said his office is seeing more elder fraud schemes run by foreign nationals who target seniors.

So why does a TCPA guy care?

Look, I write about calls. And this scheme started with calls.

Every time a story like this hits the local news, older consumers get a little more scared of their phones. Which, honestly, they should. But it also means the legit business calling about a policy renewal or an appointment gets ignored, blocked or reported.

The scammers are poisoning the well for everyone who calls people for a living.

What you can do about it

• Say what you won't do. Put it in your scripts and your website: you'll never ask for cash, gift cards, gold or a home pickup.
• Make your caller ID recognizable. Consistent numbers, honest names.
• Train your team to spot elder abuse. If a customer sounds coached or scared, slow down.
• Share the hotline. The National Elder Fraud Hotline is 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311).

That's it. Protect the people on the other end of the line.