LOCAL SCAM VICTIM IN SCOTT COUNTY RECEIVES JUSTICE

SCOTT COUNTY (September 27, 2024) – A Texas man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his role in a financial scam of an 86-year-old Scott County resident. On August 20, 2024, Hanif Shaikh, age 69, of Richmond, Texas, was convicted of Fraud and 2 counts of Theft. A sentencing hearing was held on September 16, 2024, at which the Scott County Prosecutor’s Office and the defense presented arguments to the Court about what sentence should be imposed.

On September 27, 2024, the Court imposed a total sentence of 12 years, all of which is to be served in prison. In addition to the prison sentence, Mr. Shaikh was ordered to pay restitution to the victim. The scam, which occurred in the summer of 2022, involved tricking the victim into believing that her social security number had been illegally compromised and used to obtain money in an illegal narcotics transaction.

The scammers got her to believe that she was working with the federal government to secure her life savings until they could provide her with a new social security number.

The Scottsburg Police Department was notified by a local shipping store about a package they believed to be suspicious. Upon gaining access to the package, a large amount of cash was found. As the investigation began, it took local law enforcement multiple attempts and a lot of effort to convince the victim that she was being scammed and not actually working with the federal government. By the time the police department was involved, the victim had already sent money on 2 prior occasions as part of the scam.

Steve Herald of the Scottsburg Police Department was able to work with the victim and set up another transaction in which the scammer believed he would be picking up more money from the victim. When the scammer arrived to pick up the money his car was stopped by police and Mr. Shaikh was arrested.

After Mr. Shaikh’s arrest, the prosecutor’s office and law enforcement analyzed the phone of Mr. Shaikh and discovered that he had been involved in scamming people out of money in several other places throughout the United States. That information was provided to other law enforcement agencies with jurisdiction in those areas.

“I want to praise the work of Steve Herald and the Scottsburg Police Department for their investigation and execution of this matter,” stated Chris Owens, Scott County Prosecuting Attorney. “I also want to commend the work of deputy prosecuting attorney, Bradley Hall, who spent countless hours meticulously going through phone records to discover the evidence that was needed to get this result and for his work presenting this matter in the courtroom.”

Prosecutor Owens further stated, “Scams like these happen all across the country many times each day. It is rare that cases like this get solved and scammers get held accountable for their criminal behavior. This result shows the commitment and dedication of our local law enforcement and Prosecutor’s Office to ensuring that our citizens are protected.”

The Prosecutor’s Office advises all residents of Scott County to be alert to potential scams. If you get any unsolicited correspondence asking for a financial transaction, please alert local law enforcement before going through with the transaction. Unfortunately, in the digital world in which we live, bad people are out there trying to gain from the hard work of others.