PITTSFIELD — The Berkshire District Attorney’s Office today announced in a written statement that it obtained guilty convictions, and will provide the victims of a nationwide fraud scheme their money back, in a resolution of a Berkshire Superior Court case.
Ajaykumar Chaudhari, 26, of Pownal, Vermont, and Jitendra Chaudhari, 29, of Williamstown pled guilty on Monday to single counts of larceny over $1,200 by single scheme and attempt to commit a crime to wit: larceny over $1,200. In December, a third defendant, Parth Chaudhari, pled guilty to the same charges. Combined, the three defendants will pay $212,924 in restitution.
“The victims in this case overwhelmingly supported a resolution that would return the most money in the most timely manner while sparing them, many of whom are aging and live out of state, from having to travel to Massachusetts to testify,” District Attorney Andrea Harrington said. She also thanked the Adams Police Department for their detailed and thorough investigation into the scheme.
The court required that the defendants provide restitution payments before accepting the plea, ensuring that victims get their money back quickly and in a more significant amount than through a jury trial and subsequent restitution hearing.
The three operated a multi-state scheme intended to defraud individuals through phone scams. Police in other jurisdictions in the country alerted Adams Police in March 2020 that victims were sending packages of money to addresses in the town of Adams. Adams Police and the Berkshire State Police Detective Unit assigned to the Berkshire DA’s Office conducted a three-month investigation. Police in Lanesborough, North Adams, Pittsfield, Williamstown, Hoosick Falls, New York, and the Berkshire County Sheriff’s Office assisted. During that investigation, victims and law enforcement intercepted and returned packages victims sent totaling $106,000. In June, local law enforcement executed 27 search warrants, identifying a business in Adams as serving as the headquarters.
The court filed the guilty convictions of Ajaykumar Chaudhari and Jitendra Chaudhari for two years and sentenced Parth Chaudhari to time served, which was approximately eight months.
