Xuehai Sun

Introduction

Xuehai Sun is a 38-year-old man from Flushing, New York, who pleaded guilty in federal court in Rhode Island to conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his role in an elaborate transnational fraud scheme that targeted elderly victims across the United States and Canada. He appeared before U.S. District Court Judge Mary S. McElroy on September 30, 2026, and admitted at his change-of-plea hearing that he directed couriers who collected cash and gold from fraud victims on behalf of the conspiracy. He is scheduled to be sentenced on January 6, 2027, and the offense carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.

Background Information

According to court documents, Sun participated in a complex fraud operation in which members of the conspiracy targeted seniors by sending pop-up messages to their computers. The messages were crafted to appear as though they came from legitimate technology companies and falsely warned victims that their computers had been hacked, that their bank accounts had been compromised, or that they were under investigation. Victims were instructed to call a “live agent” who falsely claimed to be able to help safeguard their financial assets, and were then connected to other members of the conspiracy.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Pleaded guilty. Sun pleaded guilty before Judge Mary S. McElroy on September 30, 2026, to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The scheme conduct below is described in court documents, his courier role comes from his own change-of-plea admissions, and sentencing remains pending.

The scheme worked through a chain of deceptions. Pop-up messages appeared on seniors’ computers bearing the look of legitimate technology companies and falsely warned that the computers had been hacked, that bank accounts had been compromised, or that the victims were under investigation. Victims who called the “live agent” number were walked through a series of calls in which they were connected to other members of the conspiracy posing as representatives of financial institutions or government agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission and the Federal Reserve Bank. Victims were then deceived into transferring funds and other assets — via wire transfers, cryptocurrency, or even by withdrawing cash to purchase gold bars — to accounts purportedly controlled by government agencies. In reality, the funds were directed to individuals involved in the fraud scheme.

Sun’s own role emerged in his admissions at the change-of-plea hearing. He admitted that he had people who worked for him as couriers to pick up cash and/or gold from victims, whose names and information were provided to him by other co-conspirators, and that he dispatched those couriers to make the pick-ups knowing that the funds and gold had been obtained by fraudulent and false statements to the victims. He further admitted that he communicated with co-conspirators about the coordination and dispatch of couriers, the transport of the gold and cash to conspiracy members, the amounts owed to conspiracy members, and the conversion of gold to cash.

The scale of the operation was substantial. Law enforcement has identified approximately 300 victims of the conspiracy group of which Sun was a part, located in at least 37 states, including Rhode Island. Known losses of the conspiracy group exceed $5 million, and investigators have identified an additional $16 million in suspected fraud proceeds laundered through a related account. Sun was arrested in New York, initially appeared in the Eastern District of New York, and was then transferred to the District of Rhode Island for prosecution, where he entered his guilty plea before Judge McElroy.

Public Reaction and Consequences

The case became public through the announcement by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island, which laid out the scheme’s reach: roughly 300 identified victims across at least 37 states, known losses exceeding $5 million, and a further $16 million in suspected fraud proceeds laundered through a related account. The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations Providence and IRS Criminal Investigation as part of the Rhode Island Homeland Security Task Force, with assistance from the Narragansett Police Department, East Providence Police Department, New York Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety, and HSI offices in New England, New York, Houston, and Los Angeles. The U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Eastern District of New York and the Southern District of Texas also assisted, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Denise M. Barton is prosecuting the case.

Current Status

Sun has pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing. He appeared before Judge Mary S. McElroy on September 30, 2026, and admitted the courier-coordination conduct described in court documents. He is scheduled to be sentenced on January 6, 2027, and the sentence will be determined by a federal district judge after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Conspiracy to commit wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison. No sentence has been imposed, and until the January 2027 hearing the final consequences of his plea remain to be determined.

Impact on Their Career/Life

Sun’s admitted role placed him inside a fraud operation that took cash and gold directly from elderly victims, with couriers dispatched to their doors based on information supplied by co-conspirators. His guilty plea resolves the conspiracy charge but leaves the penalties ahead of him: a maximum of 20 years in federal prison, with sentencing set for January 6, 2027. Given the identified losses — more than $5 million in known losses from the wider conspiracy and $16 million more in suspected laundered proceeds — the outcome of that hearing will define the rest of his record.

Sources

• U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island, “Flushing, NY Man Pleads Guilty in Transnational Fraud Scheme Targeting Elderly Victims,” published October 1, 2026 — source