The U.S. Department of Justice has expanded its Elder Fraud Strike Force, the agency announced on Tuesday.

The expansion will increase the total number of U.S. Attorney Offices comprising the Strike Force from 6 to 20, including all of the U.S. Attorney's Offices in the states of California, Arizona, Texas, Florida, Georgia, Maryland and New York.

The Strike Force targets foreign-based fraud schemes that target American seniors.

In addition to U.S. Attorneys, the Strike Force involves the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security and the Department of Justice's Consumer Protection Branch.

From September of 2021 to September of 2022, the DOJ pursued approximately 260 elder fraud cases involving more than 600 defendants, they reported. The cases involved mass-marketing scams to "bad actors" scamming their neighbors. The DOJ said it has also attempted to return the money to fraud victims whenever possible.

In California, the DOJ targeted an India-based fraudulent robocall scam that targeted older Americans. The CEO of a telecommunications provider that served as a gateway carrier for the Indian fraudsters was found guilty in September of knowingly facilitating and profiting off the scams.

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