WANTED: Fraudsters Tricked Boro Park Senior into Forking Over More than $10,000
By Yehudit Garmaise
Police are searching for two suspects who have been working together to make off with nearly $30,000 since May 31 by telling unsuspecting senior citizens that they have relatives who are desperately in need of thousands of dollars to be bailed out of jail.
On June 8, an unsuspecting 77-year-old Boro Park man handed the crooks $10,679, police told nbcnewyork.
The next day, a 74-year-old woman in Queens was asked for $6,800 after telling her the same lie that she had relatives who needed her financial help, the smart lady was able to reach the family member whom the perpetrators were claiming needed her help.
Realizing that she was being scammed, the woman confronted the suspect, who then ran off without stealing any cash.
Moving on to their next mark, however, the undeterred suspects returned to Brooklyn 90 minutes later to target an 88-year-old woman who gave the thieves $13,900, police said.
The suspects started their stealing rampage on May 31, when an 83-year-old Queens man forked over $5,000 to help what was thought was a relative in need.
Thankfully, no injuries were reported in any of the cases.
Authorities released surveillance images of the suspects. Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS.