LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — A Kingman-area resident who thought he was investing in cryptocurrency instead lost more than $113,000 in a scheme that involved cash drop-offs and a “courier” identified by a photo of a one-dollar bill, according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies took a fraud report on May 21, after the victim said he had befriended someone on social media about six months earlier. During their conversations, the person discussed investing the victim’s money into cryptocurrencies.
The victim told deputies he gave the person cash on three different occasions totaling $113,000. The victim was also provided with a fake phone application that showed the investment and the interest the money was supposedly accruing.
According to the sheriff’s office, the victim would withdraw cash, photograph it and send the photograph to the person. The person would then send the victim a photograph of a one-dollar bill that would later be used to identify the “courier” picking up the cash. The person would then have a “courier” meet the victim at a local business in the 3700 block of N. Stockton Hill Road, where the “courier” would show the victim the one-dollar bill before the victim handed over the cash.
After the victim learned it was fraud and contacted the sheriff’s office, the person continued communicating with the victim and requested an additional $100,000 in cash, later changing the amount to $65,000, the sheriff’s office said.
Detectives assumed the identity of the victim and arranged for the transaction. The person requested a photograph of the initial $100,000 cash, and detectives, with the help of a local bank, provided a photograph of $100,000 cash, according to the sheriff’s office. The person then changed the amount to $65,000, and detectives sent an additional photograph and arranged a transfer of the money to the “courier.” The person also sent a photograph of a one-dollar bill the “courier” was supposed to provide for confirmation of the transaction.
On Friday, Mohave County Sheriff’s Office detectives, assisted by the Kingman Police Department Street Crimes Unit, conducted an operation in the 3700 block of N. Stockton Hill Road. At about 12:12 p.m., the “courier” arrived and was taken into custody without incident, the sheriff’s office said.
The suspect was identified as Jay Jin Xia, 40, of Hacienda Heights, California, and an American citizen. Investigators said Xia had evidence on him, including the phone used to communicate and the one-dollar bill that tied him to the investigation.
Xia was taken to the Mohave County Adult Detention Facility and booked for fraud. Additional charges are pending further investigation. The investigation is ongoing.
