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A Chinese national seeking asylum in New York City allegedly attempted to scam an elderly Buffalo-area woman out of $360,000 of her inheritance and life’s savings, using an internet fraud scheme while claiming to be a “Microsoft security” representative.
Didi Zou, 39, was arrested in June for conspiracy to commit money laundering and wire fraud and faced a July detention hearing where U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah McCarthy ordered him to remain in custody while the federal case proceeds, The Buffalo News reported Wednesday.
Attorney Jeffrey T. Bagley, an assistant federal public defender representing Zou – a temporary work visa-holder seeking asylum in New York City – claimed in court that Zou is an alleged “white-collar” crime defendant and “not one that’s a violent one,” according to the News.
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Didi Zou, 39, was arrested in June for conspiracy to commit money laundering and wire fraud. He is a Chinese national seeking asylum and is in New York City on a temporary work visa, according to The Buffalo News. (Niagara County Sheriff’s Office; Matt Jelonek/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
“So stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from elderly people would not be a danger?” McCarthy asked. “It’s callous, it’s greed-driven, and it had devastating consequences to members of the community.”
Zou is alleged to have directed an elaborate scam that led to the unnamed elderly Tonawanda woman giving him, as he posed as an IRS agent, $20,000 and “gold coins/bullion to protect their funds in the ‘IRS Banking’ account,” according to the Justice Department.
“Mr. Zou is nothing more than a mule,” Bagley claimed in court, according to the report, adding, “The masterminds behind the stealing, they’re not going to be the ones showing up for face-to-face interactions.”
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Didi Zou, 39, was arrested in June during a traffic stop after having an FBI-IRS sting track him via fake gold. (Niagara County Sheriff’s Office; Matt Jelonek/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Assistant U.S. attorney Colleen McCarthy says there is evidence of Zou having traveled from New York City to New Jersey and Indiana, for potential “other pickups” and internet fraud victims, according to the News.
Zou is alleged to have used internet hacking, passwords, fake names and posing as a federal agent to scam the elderly women in the elaborate scheme.
“He was not used,” McCarthy said, rejecting Zou attorney’s claim of being an unwitting “mule.” “He was involved.”
The scheme allegedly started on May 15, when the elderly woman was logging payments and bills into a Microsoft Excel workbook. She received a purported Microsoft alert on her computer screen with the phrase, “Microsoft Security,” and instructions to call a phone number, according to the criminal complaint.
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An internet security scam led to an FBI and IRS investigation to bust a Chinese national from New York City for allegedly posing as an IRS agent.
She called that number, which kicked off a month-long scheme, allegedly directed by Zou, “to set up a bank account with the IRS on their personal banking website and move their funds to the IRS Bank because of the ‘hackers’ in their computer,” according to a DOJ release.
Fearing hackers, the woman downloaded software at the alleged scammer’s instruction that surrendered remote access to her computer, as well as banking details and passwords.
The reported $360,000 in assets included “profits from the sale of their parents’ house, inherited savings, and multiple CDs.”
The alleged scheme led the woman to give $20,000 to an IRS “agent” at a coffee shop near her home in Tonawanda, New York, and make five purchases of gold coins/bullion and hand those over at the local coffee shop through June 18.
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The gold was fake and tagged with tracking devices after the victim worked with FBI agents, the IRS and New York State Police in a sting.
Zou was taken into custody after a traffic stop, telling a New York state trooper he was dropping off a friend in the Buffalo area and heading back to his home in Brooklyn, according to the News.
Microsoft is not a party to this criminal scheme, but FOX Business did reach out to the company for comment Wednesday morning.
Tech-support imposter scams have surged nationwide, frequently weaponizing consumer trust in major brand names like Microsoft, Apple, or Amazon, the FBI warns.
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According to federal cyber regulators, these schemes generally follow a familiar playbook:
The Pop-Up Trap: Malware or compromised web browsers trigger an unclosable banner or loud audio warning claiming the device is infected or hacked.
The Fake Hotline: Victims are instructed to call a toll-free number where operators act helpful while establishing control.
The Financial Drain: Scammers often persuade victims to grant remote access to their computers, log into online bank accounts, or transfer cash, wire funds, buy gold bars, or convert money into cryptocurrency under the guise of “safekeeping” or “fixing the breach.”
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Major tech firms, including Microsoft, emphasize that legitimate corporations never display unsolicited pop-up messages containing phone numbers to call for technical support, nor do they ask for payments in cryptocurrency or wire transfers.
Law enforcement agencies warn consumers that if an unexpected warning freezes a computer screen, they should never call the phone number listed. Instead, reboot the device, disconnect from the internet, and verify any account issues directly through official corporate websites.
