AZDPS and ADCRR Arrest Six Suspects in Connection with Fraudulent Schemes Investigation

On the morning of Wednesday, June 21, 2023, detectives with the Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) State Gang Task Force Career Criminal Unit, assisted by the Arizona Department of Corrections Rehabilitation and Reentry (ADCRR) Office of Inspector General, served four residential search warrants and arrested six suspects in connection to an ongoing fraudulent schemes investigation.

The investigation began in May of 2023, when AZDPS detectives and ADCRR personnel conducted cell searches at a correctional center in Eloy. These searches resulted in the discovery of numerous documents consistent with a potential fraudulent scheme.

Following further investigation, detectives learned multiple victims were contacted by a company called “Debt 2 Credit Associates”, which claimed to be part of a government grant program with money to help people pay off debt. As part of this scam, victims were instructed to buy gold and ship it to addresses in Arizona.

Detectives have identified and been in contact with ten victims who have lost money, with dozens more who are victims of aggravated identity theft. Some of the victims have lost up to $200,000 in this fraudulent scheme, with a current total loss estimated between $500,000 and $600,000.

Currently, all of the victims identified by detectives reside outside of Arizona.

The addresses provided by the victims who mailed gold came back to known associates or former ADCRR inmates. Detectives discovered several packages of gold or other precious metals that were sent as part of this fraudulent scheme.

The suspects who were not already in custody were booked into the Maricopa County Jail.