NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
Savannah, GA, August 17, 2025: A Georgia man has been arrested in connection with a months-long fraud and exploitation scheme that allegedly targeted an elderly Chatham County woman, defrauding her of more than $900,000 through an elaborate impersonation and deception operation.
According to the Chatham County Police Department (CCPD), 20-year-old Pranavkumar Baria was arrested on August 14, 2025, after detectives intercepted him outside the victim’s home, where he had allegedly arrived to collect more precious metals as part of the continuing scam. Baria has been charged with Theft by Deception (Criminal Attempt), Elder Abuse (Criminal Attempt), and Trafficking an Elder Person (Criminal Attempt). He was denied bond and remains in custody at the Chatham County Detention Center.
Police said Baria’s arrest followed an “intensive investigation” by the department’s Criminal Investigations Division. The victim was first contacted in May by someone claiming to be from her bank’s fraud department. The caller told her that her account had been hacked and that she needed to transfer money and purchase gold coins to “protect” her funds. The victim ultimately handed over nearly $400,000 in gold coins and made additional wire transfers totaling about $909,000.
Detectives believe Baria was part of a larger operation that involved other suspects posing as financial fraud investigators. The scammers persuaded the victim to withdraw funds from her retirement accounts, purchase gold coins, and turn them over in a dark parking lot to individuals she was told were helping to safeguard her assets.
CCPD Chief Jeff Hadley urged potential victims to come forward, noting that the sophistication of the scheme suggests there may be others in the community who were similarly targeted.
