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Utkarsh Thakur, 29, admitted to one count of money laundering in April, and a judge sentenced him this week, the US Attorney for Massachusetts said.
Investigators said Thakur was a member of a group of scammers who would cold-call victims and claim to be law enforcement or people of authority and threaten them with arrest or loss of public assistance if they didn't pay up. Officials said Thakur collected the scammed money and moved it to people higher up in his organization.
Police in Sharon arrested Thakur after a Washington woman mailed $23,000 in cash to an address in Massachusetts, authorities said. She told investigators that someone claiming to be a Social Security official told her she needed to send the money overnight or she would lose her benefits. The package was addressed to Louis Edgar.
Thakur showed up to pick up the package with a fake California ID for Louis Edgar, a news report said. Investigators said they found $83,183 in cash inside Thakur's car.
Police said Thakur helped launder more than $1.5 million from victims. He also kept some of the money for himself.
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