Man sentenced to 14 years in prison for pop-up scam targeting Sandy Springs resident

A man has been sentenced to over a decade in prison for scamming an elderly Sandy Springs victim out of around $500,000 by pretending to be a federal agent.

Javed Ashid was arrested in Georgia while he was traveling to meet another victim, investigators say.

According to the Sandy Springs Police Department, the situation began on July 19, 2024, when the victim in the case received a fake pop-up notification that claimed their identity and financial accounts were at risk.

Ashid then pretended to be a representative of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, convincing the victim that their life savings were in danger and that they had to give him sums of money to protect it.

Investigators say the victim met Ashid around 10 times in person to give him large sums of cash and that Ashid reportedly used different vehicles to avoid being detected.

The police department was able to identify Ashid and the vehicles using license plate readers. 

On Oct. 6, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison.

Authorities say the case is an important reminder of the impact scams can have on elderly and vulnerable people.

"We encourage residents to remain vigilant and remember that legitimate financial institutions and government agencies will never ask individuals to withdraw large sums of cash or arrange in-person cash pickups to protect their money," the Sandy Springs Police Department wrote on Facebook. "Anyone who receives a suspicious request of this nature should immediately contact their financial institution directly and report the incident to law enforcement."