MISSOULA – A man originally from India who stole over $1.7 million from the elderly was sentenced today to 72 months in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.Zabi Ullah Mohammed, 29, was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of wire fraud after trial in October 2025.U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy presided.The government alleged in court documents, and at trial, that Zabi Ullah Mohammed was a courier connected to an India-based scheme designed to steal from the elderly across the United States. Although the scheme contained many different variations, the ultimate end was that victims were fraudulently led to believe it was necessary to withdraw money and other assets from various financial institutions and provide it to a “federal agent” purportedly for “safekeeping.” In reality, there was no “federal agent” and the money that victims provided to Mohammed under this pretense was simply stolen from the victims.Authorities discovered Mohammed as a conspirator in this case because a victim in Missoula reported she was defrauded of over $900,000. To catch the fraudsters involved, law enforcement set up a ruse pickup in Missoula with a package that contained a tracking device. Mohammed arrived and picked up the package of what he believed was cash. When Mohammed discovered the tracker inside, he threw the package out of his vehicle and attempted to flee. When arrested, Mohammed attempted to claim he was a victim of this scheme as well; however, a trial jury found that Mohammed was, in fact, a member of the conspiracy.Victims in this case lost over $3,900,000, and Mohammed personally retrieved approximately $1,700,933 in gold and U.S. currency.Assistant U.S. Attorney Katy Stack prosecuted the case. The FBI and Missoula County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation.XXX
Source: U.S. Department of Justice