KPD Arrests Suspect Following Controlled Operation in Gold-Based Fraud Scheme
The the Internal Revenue Service contacted Kinston Police Department actively investigating a large-scale gold-based fraud scheme in which a Kinston resident was victimized.
The investigation revealed that since October 2025, a suspect known only as “Lucas,” along with other unidentified individuals posing as federal and financial officials, convinced the victim that his financial accounts had been compromised. The suspects provided the victim with a controlled cellular phone, remotely accessed his personal computer, and directed him to wire funds for the purchase of gold through The Carolina Coin & Gold Company. The victim was instructed to photograph the purchased gold and subsequently surrender it to couriers in the Kinston area.
As a result of the scheme, the victim reported an approximate financial loss of $2.8 million. During the investigation, the Internal Revenue Service placed a hold on the victim’s accounts. Investigators then coordinated a controlled gold drop on January 15, 2026, in an effort to identify and apprehend those responsible.
On January 15, 2026, KPD’s Investigations Division conducted the controlled operation in the parking lot of Walmart. Once the transaction was completed, detectives attempted a vehicle takedown. The driver fled west through the parking lot and then north onto Hill Farm Road. The vehicle continued on Hill Farm Road before crashing into a utility pole at the intersection of Hill Farm Road and Banks School Road.
The driver was taken into custody and identified as 29-year-old Michael Francois of Florida. Francois sustained a head injury after failing to wear a seatbelt and striking the vehicle’s windshield. He was transported to UNC Lenoir Health Care for medical treatment.
On January 16, 2026, Francois was released from medical care and placed in the Lenoir County Jail on the following charges:
- Exploitation of the Elderly (2 counts)
- Felony Flee to Elude Arrest
- Felony Conspiracy (4 counts)
- Resisting a Public Officer
- Money Laundering (greater than $100,000)
- Obtain Property by False Pretenses (2 counts)
- Identity Theft (2 counts)
- Careless and Reckless Driving
- Speeding
- Stop Sign Violation
- Failure to Wear Seat Belt
This investigation remains ongoing. Additional arrests are possible.
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