Scammer faces 20 years in exploitation case

Minglong Chen

Minglong Chen

Share this: Email | Facebook | X

A man who admitted to exploiting a 93-year-old Minden resident to the tune of $90,375 by claiming to be a law enforcement officer admitted to one count of exploitation of an elderly person on Tuesday.

Ming Long Chen, 46, has been in custody since Sept. 9, 2024.

Chen faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $25,000 fine at his June 24 sentencing.

Chen, who has an immigration hold, required a Mandarin translator to work on his plea agreement and canvass on Tuesday.

District Judge Tod Young pointed out there wasn’t a certificate of translation to the Chinese portion of the plea agreement.

Defense attorney Joey Gilbert assured the judge that Chen went through it with an attorney fluent in Chinese located in Los Angeles.

Prosecutor Jim Sibley said he expects there will be witness testimony at the sentencing, which prompted Young to tell counsel the sentencing date is firm.

A $50,000 warrant has been issued for a woman arrested in January involved in a similar crime.

Zhu Ping Ge, 39, of San Gabriel, Calif., failed to appear in East Fork Justice Court on April 22. Her attorney had filed paperwork for her to appear virtually.

Arrested with Ge, Cindy Yaohua Guo, 43, is scheduled to appear with her attorney Justin Oakes on May 7.

The two women are accused of attempting to pick up $18,000 cash from a Gardnerville Ranchos resident in a subscription scam.

They are charged with felony exploitation of an elderly person, conspiracy and principal to theft.

Both crimes began as contacts online, something that the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office alerted residents to earlier this week.

Carson Valley United Methodist Church hosted a Senior Fraud Protection seminar conducted by Douglas County Sheriff’s Sgt. John George on April 10.

The Douglas County Republican Women are hosting a cybersecurity seminar 3-5 p.m. May 19 at Valley Christian Fellowship in Minden. Douglas County Sheriff Dan Coverley is the keynote speaker along with State Chief Information Officer Timothy Galluzi and Digital Evidence Expert Robert Petrachek.

The speakers will talk about the latest hacking techniques targeting people’s identity, email, and bank accounts. They will also discuss the advancements and ethical concerns of artificial intelligence.

Cost is $10 per person and light refreshments will be served. Email DCRWrsvp@gmail.com for reservations.