PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. – A pair of con artists stole $30,000 from an 85-year-old Pembroke Pines man last week in a scam involving cashing in "winning" lottery ticket, police said.
And Pembroke Pines police say they have seen the scheme before and are warning the public about the dangers of the lottery ticket scam.
“He’s not a man who gets taken easily, I gotta imagine it was just the sheer anger of getting taken, and falling for something like that,” said Joe Pistone, the victim’s son.
According the incident report, the victim, Pietro Pistone, was approached by a well-dressed, Spanish-speaking man on Aug. 23 in the parking lot of a BJ's Wholesale Club store.
Pistone struggled to understand the man because he speaks Italian and limited English and Spanish. Just then, a Hispanic woman in her late 30s to early 40s walked by and offered to translate.
Police said the well-dressed man claimed to have lottery ticket worth $1 million, but he couldn't redeem it because of his immigration status. The man asked Pistone and the woman -- who police say was in on the scam -- for $30,000 each in exchange for half a million dollar each.
With Pistone listening in on speaker phone, the woman called a number and supposedly verified that the ticket was indeed a winning one, the report said.
While the man and Pistone waited together, the woman supposedly left to get her $30,000 payment, the report said. A few minutes later, the woman produced a white bag purportedly filled with cash, the report said.
Pistone then went to his bank and withdrew $30,000 and gave it to the man in exchange for the ticket, the report said.
The woman waited outside the store when Pistone tried to redeem the ticket. When he discovered the fraud, the woman had fled, the report said.
Police described the man as 19 to 23 years old. He had black hair and a thin build, police said.
Police said the con artists carefully avoided areas where they would show up on surveillance cameras.
Pembroke Pines Police offered these tips to avoid becoming a victim:
- If anyone approaches you in a parking lot with a business proposition of any kind -- including claims that they are a lottery winner -- ignore them and walk away.
- Scammers will oftentimes employ a second person to coerce the intended victim into believing the scheme is legit. These accomplices will act as though they are also participating in the lottery proposal, when in actuality they are in on the scam and are trying to boost the victim's confidence.
- Basically, the best thing to do is to not engage with strangers who are trying to offer you a "deal," as no money is free money and you shouldn't assist any individuals who are trying to get around the system.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS.