Story perspectives

Police Recover $300K Gold, Arrest $900K Coin Scheme Leaders

5/19/2026

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Center

Police Thwart Gold

Police staged a third exchange, recovering gold coins and thwarting a $300,000 handoff in the Connecticut scam.
Hector Perez pleaded guilty to fraud charges in California while Tushar Sharma was arrested in Connecticut over $900,000 gold-coin scheme.
Aug. 24 sentencing could impose up to 20 years and an aggravated identity-theft term for Perez.
Sharma was arrested May 14 on a $150,000 bond, facing conspiracy and attempted larceny.

Right

O'Keefe Exposes Scam

James O’Keefe released video showing a California petition collector paying homeless individuals on Skid Row to complete voter registration forms.
Prosecutors secured a guilty plea from collector Brenda Lee Brown Armstrong and arrested providers in a $1 billion Medicare fraud scheme.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon warned false registrations erode confidence and pledged DOJ election protection.
Investigation found collector used her former address, risking mailed ballots being sent to her home.

History

Historical Context

In 2007 the DOJ, HHS OIG and FBI formed the Medicare Fraud Strike Force to combat false Medicare claims. The task force’s first high-profile action came in July 2010, charging 94 providers for $251 million in bogus billing, establishing a model for later nationwide raids. That precedent underpins today’s Connecticut gold-coin seizure and renewed calls for tighter fraud oversight.

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Police Thwart Gold

Police staged a third exchange, recovering gold coins and thwarting a $300,000 handoff in the Connecticut scam.
Hector Perez pleaded guilty to fraud charges in California while Tushar Sharma was arrested in Connecticut over $900,000 gold-coin scheme.
Aug. 24 sentencing could impose up to 20 years and an aggravated identity-theft term for Perez.
Sharma was arrested May 14 on a $150,000 bond, facing conspiracy and attempted larceny.

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