A suspected fraud courier arrived at an older Michigan woman’s home carrying a dollar bill whose serial number matched a secret verification code. He was expecting to collect $60,000 in cash, but detectives were already waiting inside the residence.
Allegan County deputies arrested Xiangbo Sun, 24, during the June 18, 2026 exchange. Authorities say he was acting as a money collector for people impersonating federal officials and later connected him to more than $1 million in suspected fraudulent cash and gold pickups across the United States.
The Michigan woman had already lost nearly $500,000 after a caller claiming to work for the Federal Trade Commission convinced her that her identity and her family’s financial security were in danger. The money she surrendered included $237,000 in gold coins collected during two earlier visits.
Details of the wider investigation became public on October 12. Sun remained charged in Michigan with obtaining property by false pretenses. The allegations have not resulted in a conviction.
Caller Posing as FTC Official Warns Woman Her Identity Was Stolen
The alleged scheme began in May 2026 when the woman received an unexpected call from someone claiming to represent the Federal Trade Commission. The caller asked whether she had made several online purchases, according to information released by the Allegan County Sheriff’s Office and reported by FOX 17.
When she denied making the purchases, the caller claimed her identity had been stolen. The person warned that criminals could also steal her children’s identities unless she took immediate steps to protect her family’s finances.
The caller knew personal information about the woman and her relatives, which investigators said made the approach more convincing. Rather than directing her to file an identity theft report, the impersonator instructed her to move funds out of her financial accounts and place them with purportedly secure couriers.
The woman was assured that the money would eventually be returned with interest after the supposed identity theft problem had been resolved.
Woman Gives Couriers Gold Coins and Nearly Half a Million Dollars
Following the caller’s instructions, the woman withdrew money from retirement and savings accounts. Investigators said she sent substantial funds through wire transfers and checks and arranged for individuals to collect valuables from her residence.
Two couriers visited her home on separate occasions and collected gold coins worth a combined $237,000. Those collections were part of the nearly $500,000 she reportedly lost, rather than an additional loss on top of that total.
By June 17, the woman had contacted the Allegan County Sheriff’s Office about the suspected fraud. According to News Channel 3, she told investigators that the people behind the scheme were continuing to contact her.
Another collection had already been arranged for the following day. This time, the people communicating with her wanted a courier to receive $60,000 in cash. The continuing demands gave detectives an opportunity to monitor the exchange rather than simply investigate payments that had already disappeared.
Detectives Use Matching Dollar Bill Serial Number During $60K Sting
Investigators from the Allegan and Kent County sheriff’s offices coordinated the June 18 operation. Plainclothes detectives positioned themselves inside the woman’s home, while other officers monitored the surrounding area. Drones provided aerial surveillance, and marked patrol vehicles were staged nearby.
The caller arranging the pickup had given the woman a verification code. The individual collecting the money was supposed to produce a one-dollar bill with a serial number matching that code, demonstrating that he was the person the scammers had authorized to receive the cash.
At approximately 5 p.m., a man approached the residence and presented the matching dollar bill. The woman handed over the $60,000, and officers moved in to arrest him.
Lyft Driver Tells Investigators About Chicago Pickup and New York Flight
Investigators located a Lyft driver who had transported Sun from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport to Allegan County. The driver told deputies he was supposed to wait for his passenger and then take him to Gerald R. Ford International Airport near Grand Rapids.
Sun planned to fly from Grand Rapids to New York after collecting the money. According to court-document reporting by News 8, Sun told investigators that another person had purchased his airline tickets.
The same report describes a search of the rideshare vehicle that uncovered a backpack containing shipping supplies and $35,000 in cash. The driver told deputies the bag belonged to Sun.
Sun allegedly told detectives he was working as a courier and had been promised $700 for collecting the $35,000. He expected additional compensation for the $60,000 Michigan pickup, although the precise amount of that payment was not established in the available court-document reporting.
Phone Evidence Connects Suspected Courier to More Than $1 Million in Pickups
Following the arrest, Allegan County detectives examined cellular records and other information about Sun’s activities after arriving in the United States. Authorities said the evidence associated him with more than $1 million in fraudulent cash and gold pickups involving people in multiple states.
The findings extended beyond the woman whose report prompted the Michigan investigation. Detectives identified dates, locations and times associated with other suspected collections and shared the information with law enforcement agencies in the relevant jurisdictions.
The sheriff’s office said the investigation had contributed to arrest warrants being obtained in two other states. The jurisdictions and details of those proceedings were not identified in the department’s publicly reported statement.
Authorities also identified additional suspected couriers believed to have collected gold from the Michigan woman before she contacted deputies. Their names were being withheld while investigators continued examining the operation.
Sun Faces Michigan False Pretenses Charge as Separate Court Case Is Transferred
The Allegan County Sheriff’s Office inmate record identifies Sun’s booking on June 18, 2026, under number 2026-00001694. It lists a false-pretenses felony proceeding under case reference 26-27961-FH and a separate fugitive-from-justice proceeding under 26-2047-EX.
The jail record displays a $100,000 cash-or-surety bond alongside each of those case references. The entries do not establish that either bond was posted or that the two amounts should be combined into a single bond figure.
The Michigan judiciary’s public case records identify the separate fugitive proceeding as 2026-262047EX-EX in Allegan County’s 57th District Court. The 14-page MiCOURT case record documents a July 6 arraignment and a not-guilty plea, with Victoria Star Benavidez later listed as Sun’s attorney in that proceeding.
On October 6, the fugitive case was marked transferred. The docket also shows that a previously scheduled November 4 hearing was removed on October 5. An October 14 entry is designated for internal review only. The transfer does not establish a dismissal or acquittal in the separate Michigan false-pretenses prosecution.
According to the sheriff’s office, the Michigan false-pretenses allegation involves property valued between $50,000 and $100,000. Under Michigan Compiled Laws Section 750.218, a qualifying conviction involving that value range carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and a possible fine of up to $25,000 or three times the property’s value, whichever is greater.
The charged Michigan value range is distinct from the nearly $500,000 the woman allegedly lost to the larger scheme and the more than $1 million in nationwide collections identified by investigators. Sun is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
How to Recognize Fake Government Officials Demanding Cash or Gold
The Federal Trade Commission warns that legitimate government agents do not instruct people to withdraw savings, purchase gold or hand cash to couriers to protect their finances. Demands to move money into supposedly secure government accounts or surrender valuables for safekeeping are warning signs of fraud.
A caller’s knowledge of personal information does not establish that the person works for a federal agency. Anyone receiving an unexpected identity theft warning should end the conversation and contact the named agency independently using contact information obtained from its official website.
People who have already transferred money or arranged a courier pickup should contact their financial institution and local law enforcement immediately. They should preserve messages, call records, payment instructions and transaction documents. The FTC accepts suspected fraud reports at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
