Thief River Falls, MN (trfnews.i234.me) – On April 29, Gourav Patel, 35, of Chicago, was sentenced in Pennington County District Court for conspiring to swindle a Thief River Falls woman out of $20,000. He received 12 months and one day in prison, stayed for five years, and five years of supervised probation. Patel was ordered to pay $39,500 in restitution, with $25,000 from his bail applied to that amount. He also forfeited a BMW, $380 in cash, and was ordered not to possess firearms or explosives. Additionally, he must supply a DNA sample and pay fines. Prior to sentencing, a victim impact statement highlighted the emotional toll on the victim. Patel declined to speak. The charges stemmed from an incident where Patel, impersonating a Microsoft security team member, coerced the victim into withdrawing money. He was also sentenced in Wisconsin for a similar scam involving gold bars.
Man sentenced for $20,000 conspiracy
