Two men were arrested after a bank impersonation scam targeting a veteran Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office investigator ended in an undercover operation, authorities said Wednesday.
The scam began Tuesday, Oct. 27, when callers posing as bank representatives contacted the detective. They urged him to immediately withdraw thousands of dollars from his checking account. The detective recognized the scheme as fraud and kept the callers talking while detectives set up a response.
The suspects told the detective to send the cash by Uber courier into neighboring Broward County. When the driver arrived at the destination, the callers told the driver to leave the package under a parked car. Surveillance teams watched as two men came to pick it up. Detectives moved in and arrested them at the scene without incident.
Jail records list the suspects as L.C. and S.H. Both were booked into the Palm Beach County Jail early Wednesday. Each faces charges of grand theft of property valued between $5,000 and $10,000 and organized scheme to defraud to obtain property under $20,000. Bond was set at $10,000 for each.
The sheriff’s office said similar schemes often cause heavy losses for older residents. Officials advised people never to give financial information or cash in response to unsolicited calls, to verify security alerts directly with their bank using a verified number, and to call local police if a suspicious demand comes up.
