POLICE WARN OF ‘PIGEON DROP’ SCAM
SAVANNAH, GA (November 23, 2011): Metro Police have issued a warning of an old scam being renewed in the Savannah-Chatham area.
The “Pigeon Drop”, in which victims are approached to invest in an envelope of found money to share in the proceeds later, has been used to bilk two women out of hundreds of dollars. Victims usually are elderly females.
In this scam, the thief approaches the victim with an envelope of what appears to be a lot of money that was “found” nearby. Usually a second thief joins the conversation, confirms that the cash is real, and the two convince the victim to put their own money into the envelope to show good faith. Then the thief or thieves disappear with all the money, sometimes leaving the victim with another envelope full of cut paper.
A black male and black female in their early 50s and driving a tan Honda, took $750 from one elderly woman Oct. 25 in the first block of East Derenne Avenue. They then took $500 from another at the bus stop in front of Sam’s and Wal-Mart on Montgomery Crossroads on Nov. 10.
The female usually approaches the victim with the envelope and the male joins the conversation.
Central Precinct Detective Tony Lopez said such scams are plentiful this time of year and warned that such get-rich-quick schemes are never legitimate. He urged anyone suspecting a scam to call Police Emergency 911.
Anyone with information on a scam is asked to call Crimestoppers at (912) 234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637). In the body type, include “CStop2020” plus the tip. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.
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