Eight Chinese nationals who obtained student visas to attend college in the United States were indicted in Williamsport by a federal grand jury on conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania said they include: Yankun Jiang, 24, of State College, Hanlin Yang, 24, of State College; Chenhao Chen, 25, of California; Xiaoqing Tu, 24, of California; Dongjie Lu, 35, of California; Lei Bao, 22, of New York; Kuo Zhang, 31, of New Jersey; and Jiacheng Zhang, 25, of Florida.

According to Acting United States Attorney John Gurganus, the indictment alleges that

beginning in or about August of 2023 and continuing until on or about February 22, 2024, the

defendants orchestrated a wide-scale computer “pop-up” scam targeting elderly victims falsely

claiming that their computer or bank accounts had been compromised.

The indictment further alleges that members of the conspiracy traveled to victims’ homes and posed as federal law enforcement officers to collect large sums of cash from the victims claiming that the assets would be protected, among other falsehoods. It is alleged that more than 50 victims across 19 states were defrauded of more than $10 million.

“These indictments highlight the relentless efforts of Homeland Security Investigations to

safeguard our elderly population from complex fraud operations,” stated Special Agent in Charge Edward V. Owens of HSI Philadelphia. “Schemes like these cause significant emotional and financial harm to elderly victims across the country. HSI, in partnership with the FBI, remains steadfast in our commitment to securing justice for the victims and ensuring that those

responsible are held fully accountable.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Homeland

Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Lloyd is prosecuting the case.

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 20 years of imprisonment, a

term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of

guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the federal sentencing guidelines.