A 28-year-old man from the province of Naples was arrested in flagrante delicto for aggravated fraud by the Flying Squad and the Flying Squad of the Lecce Police Headquarters.
The young man was about to obtain money and jewelry from a 94-year-old woman using the classic technique of a false call from a supposed carabiniere.
The agents were alerted by the operations center that received several reports of alleged scams taking place in Lecce by self-styled carabinieri. The operations room sent patrols to the site of the latest report, from the son of a 94-year-old woman.
When the son returned home, he found his mother standing behind the door with cash and jewelry in her hand. The woman said she received a call from a carabiniere telling her that her two sons were both in the barracks because one of them had been arrested after a serious accident.
To "resolve the situation", the woman was supposed to hand over all the money and jewelry she had at home to a "colleague" who would pick them up shortly. Her son, suspicious, called 112.
Subsequent investigations led the agents to identify another potential target of the scam, who had reported an attempted scam that same morning. The modus operandi was identical: a call from a man impersonating a Carabinieri marshal informing her that her son had been involved in an accident in which an eight-year-old girl had been injured.
To “fix things,” the woman would have to pay 4.800 euros or hand over the family jewels. At home with the old woman there was the daughter who, sensing the scam, called 112.
Thanks to the timely intervention of the police and the collaboration of the victims, the scammer was arrested and is now at the disposal of the judicial authorities.
Article published on 14 June 2024 - 13:07
Video Chronicles
