Full Notification

CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION DIVISION
JACKSON POLICE DEPARTMENT
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DATE: June 18, 2010
BY: CHIEF GILL KENDRICK

POLICE WARN OF SCAMMERS

The Jackson Police Department has recently had several reports of individuals being scammed out of money by what is commonly referred to as a "pigeon drop". There have been at least four successful incidents this year to date.

The fraudsters who work in teams approach potential victims several different ways. Sometimes they are looking for a ride or directions, even advice. They portray themselves as foreign or with some type handicap or dysfunction to prey on the victim’s sympathy. Usually only one of the team makes the original approach.

The suspects “confide in” and show victims what appears to be a large sum of money explaining that they recently came into the money as an inheritance or settlement or similar explanation. The suspect claims not to be familiar with the banking system or profess distrust in the system. They request or convince the victim to show them how the banking system works by withdrawing money from their own account.

This is when the second member of the team usually comes along. This suspect joins the first suspect and joins in on the conversation ultimately encouraging victims in withdrawing their money from the bank.

The suspects accompany the victim to the bank but do not go in so they don’t appear on camera. They like to ride with the victim to keep them engaged in conversation, which keeps up the rhythm of the scam and keeps the victim from talking with anyone else and from focusing on what they are doing.

The suspects wait outside or nearby for the victim to come out with their money and convince them as a matter of mutual trust to place the money they withdrew into a bag along with the suspect’s money for safekeeping. The suspects show their mutual trust by leaving the bag behind with the victim while they go to meet with another individual. When the suspects do not return, the victim finds they were left “holding the bag”. The bag they believed to contain cash has only paper inside.

A citizen was conned out of a large amount of money in this manner over the weekend after being approached at a local discount store. The suspects in this case are described as two black men in their thirties or forties. Prior incident have been two black females or a male and a female. We believe this to be an organized group working in concert with each other.

Anyone with information, please contact the Financial Crimes Unit at the Jackson Police Department at 425-8400 or Crime Stoppers at 424-8477 (TIPS) or www.424tips.org