A would-be scammer who tricked a terrified woman into handing over tens of thousands of dollars in cash under the guise of a bogus Social Security threat was arrested on Wednesday thanks to a swift and coordinated sting operation led by Boro Park Shomrim.
The ordeal began when a local woman received a phone call on Tuesday from someone claiming to be from the Social Security Administration. The scammer threatened that she would be arrested unless she immediately paid $60,000. Terrified, the woman went to her bank to withdraw the money but was only permitted to take out $30,000 at once. She told the scammer she would give $30,000 now and the remainder the next day — and the scammer agreed.
The scammer came to her home, took the cash, and left.
It wasn’t until her husband returned home that the scam was revealed, but the woman was still too afraid to speak. Instead, she wrote down what had happened. The husband immediately called Boro Park Shomrim, who rushed to the couple’s home.
After gathering all the facts, Shomrim developed a plan. The couple went to the bank and withdrew the other $30,000 the scammer had demanded. They then sent him a receipt showing that the remaining $30,000 was ready. Meanwhile, Shomrim teams fanned out across the neighborhood, ready for the scoundrel to show up.
When the scammer came back for the second installment, the woman handed over another $30,000. But this time, Boro Park Shomrim was watching closely. As soon as the scammer had the cash in hand and the transaction was complete, Shomrim members moved in. The NYPD was immediately called, and the scammer was arrested on the spot.
“This is a textbook example of how quick thinking and coordinated action can stop a scam in its tracks,” a Shomrim coordinator told YWN. “Too often, these con artists get away clean. But not this time.”
As YWN previously reported, this incident is part of a troubling trend of scammers targeting vulnerable individuals. Just last week, Williamsburg Shomrim and the NYPD arrested a scammer who had swindled a woman out of thousands using a nearly identical scheme.
And in Kiryas Joel, Public Safety officials and New York State Police busted a group of scammers who tried extorting $13,500 from a victim by claiming there was a federal arrest warrant unless he paid up, as YWN reported.
Authorities are urging the public to remain vigilant and to never hand over money to callers threatening arrest or posing as government officials. Suspicious calls should be reported to law enforcement immediately.
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