Two people were charged on Nov. 18 with taking part in a nationwide ring that scammed 19 senior citizens out of cash totaling $45,500.
Erica Puello, 25, of Old Bridge, and Amaury Fernandez, 24, of North Brunswick, were charged with theft by deception and conspiring to commit theft by deception, according to Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew C. Carey.
The defendants were charged during an intensive investigation by Detective Christopher Pennisi and members of the Elder Abuse and Exploitation Team of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office. The investigation determined that the defendants were allegedly part of a ring that cheated the victims out of various sums of cash by making bogus phone calls, posing as relatives, friends or attorneys who needed money wired to them quickly.
In one instance, representatives of Western Union reportedly recognized the scam and warned the customer, who purportedly rejected the warning and went to MoneyGram to complete the monetary transaction, according to the statement.
The scam was based in New Jersey and cheated residents living in New Jersey, as well as residents in Maryland, Florida, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Michigan, Minnesota, Texas, Illinois, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio and Washington, D.C.
Each of the defendants was cheated out of sums ranging from $1,000 to $5,500 during the scam, which was operating between September 2015 and July 2016.
The scam initially was uncovered by Detective Dennis Donovan of the Union County Prosecutor’s Office when a Maryland resident reported he had been cheated, Carey said. The case was referred to Middlesex County after it was determined that the crimes were being committed in Middlesex County by Middlesex County residents.
“The Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, through its Elder Abuse and Exploitation Team, will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute scammers who prey on the vulnerable. These arrests are a result of one of several new and wide-ranging investigations conducted by the team,” Carey said. “Furthermore, I would like to thank Acting Union County Prosecutor Grace Park and her detectives for their diligence and cooperation in this matter.”
People who receive phone calls seeking money should verify the legitimacy of the call by contacting police from the location of the supposed emergency, or by contacting other friends or relatives who can verify the caller’s information. In past cases, scams were foiled when potential victims contacted the real person whose name was being used by the scammers, and quickly realized the real person was safe at home, according to the statement.
Anyone with information is asked to call Pennisi at 732-745-3300.
