Elder Fraud in Tennessee

An elderly couple in Hopkinsville, Kentucky was charged $64,000 (totaling $79,000 with a duplicate charge) after signing a blank invoice for asphalt driveway patching work in June. A man solicited the work unsolicited, claiming his crew had extra asphalt available, but after obtaining the wife's signature on a mostly blank invoice, the scammers completed a full driveway paving job and demanded immediate payment on multiple credit cards. The Better Business Bureau warns this is part of a pattern of door-to-door asphalt scams where fraudsters create urgency, use high-pressure tactics, and exploit blank or misleading invoices to

Scammers are increasingly targeting cell phone users with text messages impersonating toll collection agencies and delivery services, demanding immediate payment or personal information through fraudulent links. According to the Better Business Bureau, toll road scam texts are among the fastest-growing scams currently affecting consumers, with scammers using official-looking sender addresses to appear legitimate. To protect yourself, avoid clicking links from unexpected texts, verify requests directly with official sources, download tracking apps from USPS/FedEx/UPS, and block suspicious numbers rather than engaging with them.

Andrea Estell Cochran, a 51-year-old from Houston, was arrested and charged with federal bank fraud after using forged passports to impersonate account holders and withdraw approximately $11,000 from multiple banks across Washington state and Maine in 2024. She faces up to 30 years in federal prison plus additional state charges, with a plea deal hearing scheduled for August 28, 2025. A separate study by VPNPro found that seniors aged 60 and older across all U.S. states lost significant sums to fraud in 2022, with losses ranging from approximately $3 million to $31 million per state, highlighting the widesprea

Andrea Estell Cochran, a 51-year-old from Houston, was arrested and charged with federal bank fraud after using fake passports to impersonate account holders and withdraw approximately $11,000 from multiple Washington state banks in 2024, with similar attempts in Maine; she faces up to 30 years in prison and state charges across multiple Washington counties. Additionally, a VPNPro study reveals that seniors aged 60 and over across all U.S. states lost substantial sums to fraud in 2022, with per-victim losses ranging from $13,118 to $30,150 depending on the state, highlighting seniors as prime targets for scammers

An elderly couple in Hopkinsville, Kentucky was charged $64,000 (totaling $79,000 with a duplicate charge) in an asphalt paving scam after an unsolicited worker approached their home claiming to have extra asphalt materials available. The scammers had the homeowner sign a mostly blank invoice, then filled in details afterward to make it appear the couple had approved full driveway paving work, and demanded immediate payment via multiple credit cards. The Better Business Bureau warns consumers to watch for common scam patterns including unsolicited door visits, pressure tactics creating urgency, and incomplete contracts, and advises victims to dispute charges and contact authorities immediately.

An elderly couple in Hopkinsville, Kentucky was victimized by an asphalt paving scam in June when an unsolicited contractor approached them offering to patch their driveway at a low cost. After the mother signed a mostly blank invoice, the scammers filled in details and paved the entire driveway, charging $64,000 (totaling $79,000 with a duplicate charge), which the parents charged to multiple credit cards before their son stopped payment on three of the four cards. The Better Business Bureau warns consumers to avoid unsolicited door-to-door home improvement offers that use urgency tactics and to verify quotes before signing any documents.

A Chattanooga man lost $254,000 in a romance scam after meeting a scammer on a dating app who promised marriage and a life in Florida; he quit his job, sold his home, and showed up at the airport only to discover the ticket didn't exist and his accounts were emptied. Hamilton County investigators recovered $159,987.69 from the scammer's accounts. In a separate case, detectives recovered the full $54,000 stolen from another victim who was targeted by someone impersonating a U.S. Department of the Treasury representative demanding payment via cashier's check and gift cards.

Jim Maidens, a disabled Tennessee man and car enthusiast, lost $26,750 to a Facebook Marketplace scam after wiring payment for a 1963 Corvette advertised at an unusually low price without viewing it in person. The seller provided fraudulent paperwork and disappeared after confirming receipt of payment, blocking all communication attempts. The article outlines common red flags for advanced payment scams on marketplace listings—including drastically underpriced items, multiple cheap listings from one seller, stolen photos, and requests to switch to email—and recommends documenting evidence and reporting to Facebook and authorities.

A Tennessee woman and multiple passengers were scammed at Knoxville airport when an American Airlines worker handed them a Post-it note with a fraudulent phone number claiming they needed to rebook their flights due to late bag check-in; when they called the number, scammers posing as airline representatives collected their credit card information. The incident affected at least several passengers, with victims advised to cancel their payment cards, and a similar scam was reported on Reddit involving a fake airline rebooking service charging $160.

Mark Janbakhsh, CEO of auto dealership Auto Masters, was convicted of bank fraud, conspiracy, and related crimes after submitting false documentation to Capital One and First Tennessee Bank between 2013 and 2017 to fraudulently obtain approximately $26.4 million in credit. When auditors discovered discrepancies, Janbakhsh directed employees to destroy evidence and later lied under oath during bankruptcy proceedings, additionally attempting to bribe a co-conspirator with over $300,000 to flee and obstruct the federal investigation. He faces up to 30 years in federal prison and $1 million in fines at sentencing.

**Summary:** The Better Business Bureau of the Mid-South warns of a rising trend in online vehicle scams that accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic and persists today. Fraudulent websites impersonate legitimate vehicle and equipment dealerships, prompting the Tennessee Attorney General to issue a public warning with guidance on identifying red flags to protect consumers.

The Better Business Bureau advises consumers to research businesses before purchasing by verifying licenses with relevant agencies, confirming physical addresses, requesting references, and reviewing insurance information and refund policies. The bureau also warns against voice AI scams and recommends verifying requests with trusted contacts directly, noting that West Tennessee consumers have reported receiving items that did not match their expectations.

A Brentwood, Tennessee resident lost $648,000 in an elaborate scam after fraudsters posing as federal agents convinced him his identity was being used for money laundering and instructed him to liquidate his bank accounts and retirement savings into gold bars. The victim handed over gold worth $144,430 and $504,029 to fake couriers who arrived at his home on two separate occasions in April and May. Working with police, the victim set up a sting operation for a third pickup in July, resulting in the arrest of two suspects, Fan Zhang and Zhen Chen, who arrived in a gray Toyota van to collect what they believed was $273,895 in gold.

A 36-year-old Canadian man, Jia Hua Liu, was arrested in July after conducting a multi-state door-to-door scam targeting seniors across Ohio, Indiana, New Mexico, and Tennessee, defrauding victims of an estimated $309,000 total. One Charlestown, Indiana resident was tricked into withdrawing $27,000 from his retirement accounts and handing it over in cash; three additional attempted scams in Indiana, Kentucky, and Michigan were prevented by family members, potentially saving another $70,000 in losses. Liu was apprehended at Louisville airport while attempting to flee the country and faces charges including theft, fraud, conspiracy, an

A 22-year-old caregiver in Memphis was arrested for stealing approximately $82,000 worth of jewelry from elderly patients she had been caring for since June through her employer, United Home Health. Investigators confirmed the theft by obtaining video footage and pawn shop records showing Mukes had sold the jewelry on multiple dates in June, leading to charges of theft and financial exploitation of the elderly.