United States v. Timothy Ingram and Joaquin Lopez

Case No. 22-cr-2216

• Case Summary: Timothy Ingram (also known as "Bleezy") and Joaquin Lopez were involved in a scheme targeting elderly individuals in the United States. They were part of a network that used extortion and fraud tactics to deceive the victims into paying large sums of money, often tens of thousands of dollars. Members of the network contacted elderly Americans by telephone and impersonated a grandchild, other close relatives, or friends of the victim. They falsely convinced the victims that their relatives or friends were in legal trouble and needed money to pay for bail, for medical expenses for car accident victims, or to prevent additional charges from being filed. This is commonly known as the “grandparent scam.”

• Charges: In spring 2022, Ingram and Lopez each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act.

• Judgment Result: Court sentenced Ingram to 108 months in prison and Lopez to 24 months in prison.

• Additional Information: They engaged in extortion and fraud to swindle about $2 million from more than 70 elderly victims across the nation. Ten elderly victims who resided in San Diego County lost over $300,000 to the fraud.

Sources :

1. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/two-defendants-grandparent-scam-network-sentenced-rico-conspiracy- targeting-elderly-americans

2. https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdca/pr/two-men-sentenced-prison-participating-nationwide-grandparent -scam