Brown University grad student charged in alleged money scam

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A Brown University graduate student has been charged with scamming a Florida woman out of $30,000.

Shishuai Li appeared Thursday in Providence District Court on a felony charge of obtaining money under false pretenses. The 25-year-old computer science student didn’t enter a plea. He was ordered held on $3,000 bail and to surrender his passport.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether Li had an attorney.

A police report first obtained by WPRI-TV says the Department of Homeland Security began investigating after Li’s bank noticed his account received $181,000 in deposits from people linked to bank fraud around the U.S. Investigators say an Orlando woman wired $30,000 to Li’s account, thinking it would help build a school in Dubai.

The report says Li told his bank the money was a loan from a friend overseas.