Grandparents Scam Participant Sentenced to Prison

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that EDWARD ROSARIO-CANELA, 48, of the Bronx, New York, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford to 12 months and one day of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his role in a “grandparents scam” that defrauded elderly victims of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Rosario participated in a “grandparents scam,” a scheme in which fraudsters, who often live outside of the U.S., contact elderly victims in the U.S. by phone impersonating the victim’s grandchild in distress, and induce the victim to send money purportedly help the grandchild.  Rosario served as a “money-mule” in a grandparents scam that victimized several individuals who lived outside of Connecticut.  For a fee, Rosario picked up packages of money that victims had mailed to addresses in Connecticut and elsewhere, and helped send the money to coconspirators in the Dominican Republic.

Judge Nagala ordered Rosario to pay restitution of $655,683.

On November 17, 2022, Rosario pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud.

Rosario, who is released on bond, is required to report to prison on September 16.

This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Hartford Police Department, and the Monroe Police Department.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Heather M. Cherry and Michael S. McGarry.   

More information about grandparents scams and how to avoid being victimized is available here and here.