WARSAW, N.Y. (WKBW) — The Wyoming County Sheriff's Office announced over $200,000 worth of stolen gold bars was recovered during a traffic stop on July 25.
The traffic stop took place on State Route 20A near Toolhouse Road in the Town of Warsaw due to traffic infractions. According to the sheriff's office, the deputy sheriff developed reasonable suspicion a crime was being committed during the roadside interview and a search of the vehicle was conducted.
$208,226 worth of gold bars were allegedly located inside a backpack on the front seat of the vehicle and multiple torn open UPS packages were allegedly located on the rear seat.
The sheriff's office said the UPS packages had the name of an elderly Orchard Park man on them and the driver, 28-year-old Jaspreet Singh of Queens, denied ownership of the gold bars. He was released pending further investigation.
According to the sheriff's office, further investigation revealed the Orchard Park man was the victim of an elder fraud scheme in which he was contacted by a person claiming to be a U.S. Marshal who demanded payment to avoid arrest. The person claimed a U.S. Marshal courier would drive to his residence to pick up the payment. The man complied and the traffic stop occurred within an hour of the exchange. The gold bars were recovered and will be returned to the owner.
As part of the investigation, search warrants were conducted on two smartphones that were in Singh's possession during the traffic stop. Multiple videos of child pornography were allegedly located on the phone and an arrest warrant was issued for his arrest.
The Passaic Police Department in New Jersey took Singh into custody and on August 11 officials from the Wyoming County Sheriff's Office took custody of Singh and transported him back to Wyoming County.
He was arraigned in Warsaw Justice Court on second-degree criminal possession of stolen property, possession of an obscene sexual performance by a child less than 16, and speed in zone. Singh was released on his own recognizance following arraignment in accordance with NYS bail reform. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement took custody of Singh after processing pursuant to an arrest warrant and immigration detainer issued by the Department of Homeland Security.
"The Wyoming County Sheriff’s Office reminds the people of Wyoming County to be skeptical of any unsolicited phone calls where a person is asking for money or personal information. Government agencies will never call a person offering to accept payment in exchange for avoiding arrest."
