ST. LOUIS – A man from China was sentenced today to 21 months in prison for scamming $95,000 from a 79-year-old woman in Missouri.

According to prosecutors, Dongyi Guo, 28, was part of a conspiracy that targeted elders. Court documents say that Guo and others were contacting the victim in March last year. They claimed to be representatives of her financial institutions/Social Security Office.

The group then told the 79-year-old woman that her financial accounts were compromised. 

They told the woman that she needed to send over money to prevent the account from being stolen, reassuring her that an employee from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation would secure the funds.

Prosecutors say that Guo went from New York to Chicago and rented a car to the victim’s house. On March 4, 2024, Guo received $40,000; the next day he took $35,000. Then on March 6, 2024, Guo took $20,000.

Court documents claim that Guo and his group kept demanding more money from the victim. He wasn’t arrested until March 7, 2024, after an attempt to take $15,000 from the victim.

The 79-year-old woman passed away seven months later after Guo stole her money.

The victim’s daughter says her mother was “mentally and physically broken, alone and wanting to die.”

Guo ended up pleading guilty in St. Louis’ U.S. District Court in November 2024 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. 

A judge has now ordered Guo to repay the money.