FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025

Contact: Tony Mangan, Communications Director, 605-773-6878 

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announces that a California man has pleaded guilty in connection to an internet scam involving a Lawrence County couple in a theft of at least $325,000.

Chao Zheng, 30, of Monterey, CA, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Lawrence County Circuit Court to one felony count of Aiding and Abetting Grand Theft of more than $100,000 but less than $500,000 by Deception. Zheng faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison when he is sentenced on June 3. As a Chinese National, the defendant also faces deportation.

The crimes occurred between July 26, 2024 and Aug. 23, 2024, when the couple received pop-up messages on their laptop computer from “Microsoft Security.” They were asked to call a “fraud investigator” at a bank and ordered to pay large amounts of money to cover so-called commissions of crimes that had been found on their accounts. The couple paid the money three different times. Zheng was arrested when he tried to personally collect a fourth payment on Aug. 23. The exact amount of money stolen has not yet been determined.

The case was investigated by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) and the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office. The Attorney General’s Office and Lawrence County State’s Attorney’s Office are prosecuting the case.

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