Wednesday January 22, 2025: NH AG NEWS RELEASE:
Concord, NH – Attorney General John M. Formella announces that Rachel Chen, age 26, of North Andover, MA, pleaded guilty and was sentenced today in the Merrimack County Superior Court for her role in perpetrating Tech Support scams targeting elderly victims.
On March 14, 2024, the Allenstown Police Department arrested Ms. Chen attempting to pick up $22,000 in cash from an elderly victim, J.S. Ms. Chen’s coconspirators falsely told J.S. that he had a virus on his computer, his financial accounts were compromised, and he needed to turn over the cash to protect it.
After Ms. Chen’s arrest, investigation revealed that she and her coconspirators used Tech Support scams to obtain money from two additional elderly victims, E.B. and D.L., totaling $40,000.
Today, Ms. Chen pleaded guilty to two class A felony counts of conspiracy to commit theft by deception and one class A felony count of theft by deception. On one conspiracy count, the court sentenced her to 2-6 years in the New Hampshire State Prison, stand committed. On the other conspiracy count and the theft by deception count, she was sentenced to 7 ½-15 years in the New Hampshire State Prison, with all of the minimum and maximum terms suspended for a period of 10 years following her release from incarceration. The suspended sentences are consecutive to her stand committed prison sentence if imposed.
As conditions of her suspended sentence, Ms. Chen, among other things, was ordered to pay $20,000 in remaining restitution, after having paid $20,000 prior to sentencing. She is also prohibited from working in any capacity with elderly, disabled, or impaired adults, and serving as a fiduciary for any person.
As part of the plea, the State nolle prossed one remaining class A felony count of attempted theft by deception.
Investigator Calice Couchman-Ducey of the Attorney General’s Elder Abuse and Financial Exploitation Unit investigated this case with the assistance of Investigator Robert Sullivan of the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office, the Allenstown and Nashua Police Departments, and the Lamoille County Vermont Sheriff’s Department.
Senior Assistant Attorney General Bryan J. Townsend, II, and Attorney Nancy DeAngelis, of the Elder Abuse and Financial Exploitation Unit prosecuted the case. Sunny Mulligan Shea and Courtney Sirois assisted as victim/witness advocates. If you or someone you know has been the victim of elder abuse or financial exploitation, please contact your local police department or the Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Adult and Aging Services (1-800-949-0470).
Michael S. Garrity, Director of Communications [email protected] / (603) 931-9375
Bryan J. Townsend, II, Senior Assistant Attorney General Elder Abuse and Financial Exploitation Unit, [email protected] / (603) 271-7094
Nancy DeAngelis, Attorney, Elder Abuse and Financial Exploitation Unit
