Hoffman Estates man charged in IRS impersonation scheme

A Hoffman Estates man has been charged in an over-the-phone scam that federal prosecutors say raked in $666,537 from 784 victims over a span of around 20 months.

Pratik Patel, 26, and three Georgia men have been charged with wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aiding and abetting, according to a news release by the Justice Department on Thursday afternoon.

According to the criminal complaint, members of the scheme likely based in India would call victims in the United States and tell them that they owed taxes and needed to send money via wire transfer. After the victims sent payment, the three Georgia men would use fraudulent identification cards to pick up the money.

According to the complaint, Patel aided one or more of the Georgia men, who were referred to as "runners." The runners charged by authorities are Moin Gohil, 22, Parvez Jiwani, 39, and Nakul Chetiwal, 27, the news release said.