Five men indicted for laundering fraud proceeds tied to ‘tech support,’ government, and financial institution imposter scams

Seattle - Five men have been indicted in the Western District of Washington in connection with a nationwide fraud scheme taking funds from elderly victims, announced First Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd. Four of the five men have appeared on the indictment and three remain detained. The indictment alleges the men were part of a conspiracy to launder the fraud proceeds, whereby the defendants sent the fraudulently obtained funds to bank accounts in China and Hong Kong. Trial is scheduled for November 9, 2026.

"These scam groups operate like a business - some people convince the victims they must send money to "protect" their money or repair their computer. Other schemers willingly take that money and launder it through bank accounts to the benefit of the entire conspiracy," said First U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd. "These five are the men who allegedly laundered those victim funds through some 21 different shell companies and 44 bank accounts. Charging them disrupts the network and, is the first step in uncovering the rest of the conspiracy."

"In 2025 alone elder fraud cost more than a million older Americans about $2 billion," said Acting HSI Seattle Special Agent in Charge April Miller. "In this case alone, we estimate about $11 million may have been lost by our vulnerable seniors, and the associated money laundering impacts our country's financial institutions. HSI will continue to investigate cases like these and work to keep our seniors and country safe from financial predators."

According to the indictment, between October 2024 and March 2026, the men registered 21 different shell companies in Washington State and used fake identities to open some 44 different bank accounts tied to the shell companies. They also rented mailboxes at commercial entities tied to the shell companies. Using tech support scams, or by impersonating government or bank officials, the scammers convinced victims to send cashiers' checks, money orders, or other monetary instruments to the rented mailboxes. The five men indicted in Western Washington then deposited the funds in the 44 different bank accounts and then rapidly moved the money through wire transfers to accounts held in the names of business entities based in Hong Kong and the People's Republic of China. In all, the defendants collectively received and laundered more than $7.4 million in fraud proceeds from at least 77 victims.

The five defendants are charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering, ten counts of money laundering by concealment, and ten counts of money laundering by spending.

Those indicted include:

Hung Chieh Kuo, 27, of Bellevue, WA, detained pending a hearing 8/31/26

Tung Wei Yeh, 31, of Bellevue, WA, detained pending trial

Hsin Chien, 31, of Bothell, WA, released pending trial

You Wei Liew, 26, of Seattle, being sought by law enforcement

Chengpeng Zhang, 40, of Seattle, detained pending a hearing 9/2/26

Conspiracy to commit money laundering, and money laundering concealment are punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $500,000 or twice the amount of the property involved. Money laundering by spending is punishable by up to ten years in prison and $250,000 fine or twice the value of the criminally derived property.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yunah Chung.