MILLSBORO, DE - A man was arrested after a joint investigation by Delaware State Police and the FBI.
Delaware State Police (DSP) arrested 35-year-old Rakeshkumar Patel of Flushing, New York, for felony theft.
Authorities say in February, a Millsboro woman contacted DSP to report that she was the victim of a scam. Detectives say in Oct. 2023, a suspect had impersonated a federal agent and convinced the victim that she needed to convert money to gold. He reportedly told her to give it to him for transport to the U.S. Treasury for safe keeping.
Detectives identified Rakeshkumar Patel as one of the suspects involved in the scam. The joint investigation is ongoing as detectives are working to identify other suspects.
On May 20, Patel was arrested near Millsboro and taken to Troop 4. He was charged with the crimes listed below, arraigned by Justice of the Peace Court 2, and committed to Sussex Correctional Institution on a $103,000 cash bond.
- Theft over $100,000 (Felony)
- Wearing a Disguise During the Commission of a Felony (Felony)
Detectives are asking anyone who may have been defrauded in a similar manner to please contact the Financial Crimes Unit by calling Troop 2 for New Castle County at 302-834-2620, Troop 3 for Kent County at 302-697-4454, and Troop 4 for Sussex County at 302-856-5850. Information may also be provided by sending a Private Facebook Message to the Delaware State Police or contacting Delaware Crime Stoppers at 1-800-847-3333. In addition to contacting the Delaware State Police, victims are also encouraged to file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).