Pair of scammers arrested trying to pick up money after targeting local elderly resident

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. (KEYT) – Two men were arrested on Tuesday of this week in connection with a scam targeting an elderly resident.

On Feb. 24, around 11:30 a.m., deputies responded to a call about a suspected scam and were told by an elderly woman that the evening prior, Monday, Feb. 23, she withdrew $25,000 in cash and handed it to a courier she believed was a Deputy U.S. Marshal stated the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office in a press release Thursday.

The woman was contacted again on Tuesday and the caller demanded that the woman give an additional $25,000 claiming that the elderly woman's Social Security number and other identifying information had been compromised detailed the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office.

The scammers told the woman that they were trying to prevent any additional exposure of her private information and implied that she faced "adverse consequences" if they were not paid noted the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office.

When two men, a 21-year-old Tracy man and a 21-year-old man from Sacramento, arrived to collect the second payment, deputies arrested and booked the duo for multiple felonies including false personation, attempted grand theft, attempted financial elder abuse, and conspiracy to commit a crime explained the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office.

Bail for each man was set at $50,000 added the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office.

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office states that no government agency will request payment in cash, cryptocurrency, or gift cards and will not send couriers to collect payments.

Anyone who receives similar calls is urged to hang up immediately and report the incident to local law enforcement.