Connecticut Man Sentenced for Gold Coin Fraud
A Connecticut man tried to pull a fast one after writing hot checks for gold coins, but the only thing he bought was five years of probation. It looks like Karma cashed the checks after all.
A Connecticut man was sentenced on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, to five years of probation, including one year of home confinement, after deceiving a seller, acquiring over 100 gold coins under false pretenses, and transporting them across state lines.
William Dawson, 52, pleaded guilty in April 2024 to interstate transportation of property obtained by fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman handed down the sentence, which includes restitution payments. Dawson was initially arrested and charged in October 2023.
Dawson, who presented himself as a property buyer and reseller, entered into a deal with a Massachusetts-based cleanout business owner, Person-1. In December 2022, while clearing an estate in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, Person 1 came across 170 Queen Elizabeth II Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Coins, valued collectively at approximately $290,000. Person 1 arranged to sell 120 of those coins to Dawson with approval from the estate.
In January 2023, Dawson met with Person 1 in Millbury and agreed to purchase the coins for $198,800, paying with two checks. However, he lacked sufficient funds to cover them. That same day, Dawson falsely reported that his vehicle was broken into and the coins were stolen. The following day, he traveled to a pawn shop in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, selling 43 coins for $80,442.
Throughout February 2023, he continued selling more of the stolen coins, offloading 19 additional pieces at a Cranston, Rhode Island pawn shop for approximately $35,094.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service’s Boston Field Office, with assistance from the Milford Police Department and the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office. United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Andrew Murphy, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service, Boston Field Office, made the announcement on February 5. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan O’Shea prosecuted the case.
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