Analysis · Litigation & decisions
Texas Man Pleads Guilty to Laundering $1.2 Million From Tech Support Scam Targeting Seniors
Chase Harris, 36, of Keller, Texas, pleaded guilty on June 22, 2026, to conspiracy to commit money laundering for his role in an international tech support fraud scheme targeting elderly victims. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, part of the Department of Justice (DOJ), said the scheme took more than $1.2 million from about 25 known victims. The case is United States v. Harris, No. 7:26-cr-00268 (S.D.N.Y.).
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The bottom line: the people who move scam money face the same federal exposure as the people who make the calls.
What happened
According to the Information, the plea agreement, and statements in court, from at least November 2023 through at least July 2024:
- Co-conspirators caused pop-up advertisements to appear on elderly victims' computers, falsely alleging that the computer was infected with a virus.
- At times, co-conspirators posed as federal agents and threatened victims with baseless criminal charges.
- Victims were induced to pay for IT services by handwritten checks made out to businesses, including several owned or controlled by Harris: CSH Management LLC, C4H Management LLC, and S2J Consulting LLC. No services were provided.
- Harris transferred most of the money, more than $1.2 million, to an India-based company run by a co-conspirator, and kept a portion as a fee.
According to prosecutors, a co-conspirator told Harris, "We can make millions [i]n [a] [j]iffy."
The plea
Harris pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Philip M. Halpern. The charge carries a maximum of 20 years in prison. He agreed to forfeit all proceeds and to pay $1,240,847.99 in restitution. The government said it was immediately recovering $282,376 for victims. Sentencing is set for October 29, 2026. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigated the case.
Why it matters
Tech support fraud needs three things: a frightening message, a means to reach the victim, and a vehicle to collect the money. This case targets the third. Businesses that receive payments from consumers for "IT services" with no real service behind them are a core part of the scheme, and prosecutors treat them that way.
What this means for you
- If you process payments or open business accounts, watch for "consulting" or "management" entities receiving many personal checks from older consumers.
- If you run inbound call operations, confirm what your clients actually sell. Pop-up driven tech support traffic is a known fraud pattern.
- Train your staff and families: legitimate companies will not use virus pop-ups to demand money, and federal agents will not demand payment by check.
- Report suspected fraud to the FBI at IC3.gov.
Follow the money, and the scheme becomes visible. Prosecutors are doing exactly that.
Not legal advice. TCPA.com provides general information, not legal advice, and is not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Do not rely on it. Verify any action with your own licensed lawyer before you take it. See our Terms of Use.
About the Author: Harrison Gevirtz
Harrison Gevirtz serves as the Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) of Ringba, a call tracking and pay per call platform, and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada. Harrison Gevirtz is a serial operator in call tracking, call routing and telemarketing operations, and for the past several years he has focused on how federal regulations affect the daily operations of these industries. At TCPA.com, Harrison Gevirtz covers TCPA litigation, Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) enforcement, tech support fraud prosecutions and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rulemaking in a way that's accessible to the non-lawyer executive or compliance manager.
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