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Con Artists have been around
since the beginning of time in one form or
another. Their only goal is to part you from
your money! Just remember, if it sounds too good
to be true, it usually is.
THE PIGEON DROP
Cons like the "pigeon
drop" are very common. In this scam the
victim is approached by persons claiming to have
found a large sum of money. The suspects tell
the victim they would like to share the money
with the victim, but ask the victim to put up
some of his own money as a gesture of good
faith. Packages, bags, or whatever are switched
and the victim ends up with a wad of paper or
the like and the suspects are no where to be
found.
ROCKS IN THE BOX
In the "rocks in the
box" scam, the victim is approached by a
suspect who offers to sell him a new TV or VCR
or similar item at a very low price. Once the
victim parts with his money he finds himself
stuck with a box containing bricks or other junk
used to simulate the weight of the claimed
contents of the box.
BANK EXAMINER
The "bank
examiner" con is commonly practiced on
older females. In this scam the victim is
contacted, usually by phone, by a person
claiming to be an officer of the bank at which
she has an account. The caller claims that due
to computer malfunction or other problem, the
bank needs to verify certain information. During
the conversation, the caller tries to obtain
needed information about the victim's account
balance, recent account activity, etc. The
caller will also try to determine if the victim
lives alone, etc. If the phony bank officer gets
the needed information he will thank the victim,
and tell her he will call her back if there are
any problems. After a short time the phony bank
officer will call the victim again and tell her
that the problem has been caused by a bank
employee that they suspect of stealing from
customer's accounts, including the victim's. The
victim is asked if she would assist the bank in
catching the dishonest employee. The victim,
wanting to help nab the crook, often agrees. She
is then given the "plan" by the phony
bank officer. He tells the victim that a
"dummy" account has been set up in her
name for this event. She is to go to the bank
and to the suspected dishonest employee and
withdraw $3000, the amount stolen from her
account. The phony bank officer tells the victim
that the dishonest employee, knowing that the
withdrawal will cause the victim's account to be
overdrawn, will have to steal the money from yet
another account to make up the difference. The
phony bank officer tells the victim that the
dishonest employee's actions will be monitored
on closed circuit TV, and this is how he/she
will be caught. The victim is assured that her
account is fully insured and she will suffer no
loss due to the employee's dishonesty. The
victim follows through with the plan and
withdraws the agreed amount.
The victim then meets the
phony bank official at a pre-determined
location. The phony bank official then takes the
money from the victim, telling her that it
actually came from the "dummy" account
and not her account, and that it is needed as
evidence. The victim is given a receipt for the
money and of course neither the money or the
bank officer is ever seen again!
BAIL BOND SCAM
The victim is contacted by
phone by a person claiming to be a friend of a
relative of the victim. The victim is told that
the relative has been arrested for an
outstanding warrant or some other minor charge,
and needs money to get out of jail. The
"friend" asks the victim for the bail
money. If the victim agrees, the caller will
arrange for himself or another person to pick up
the money.
PHONY C.O.D. SCAM
The suspect will scout a
neighborhood to find a suitable unoccupied home.
He will check a city directory publication to
determine the name of the homeowner. He will put
the name on a phony shipping label and attach
that to a box containing rocks or similar type
debris. He will then return dressed in an
"express delivery" type of uniform. He
will pretend to knock or ring the doorbell at
the unoccupied house. Getting no answer, he will
then go next door or nearby neighbor and ask
them to accept the package and pay the C.O.D.
fee.
HOME IMPROVEMENT SCHEME
The suspects drive to the
victim's house in a contractor type vehicle and
dressed in work man's clothing. They tell the
victim they have just finished a large roofing
job (or driveway resurfacing, etc.) and have
some materials left over. They tell the victim
they will use the left-over material to repair
the victim's roof, driveway, or whatever, at a
large discount. If the victim agrees, the
suspects will do a quick, shoddy, job with cheap
material. These con artists usually travel from
town to town perpetrating this scam, staying
away from their home town where they would
surely be caught in a short time.
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