Diamond ring scam leads to $5K loss, SPPD issues warning
December 23, 2016
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
Santa Paula Police are warning residents after a woman gave thousands of dollars to two men who allegedly told her they were selling a diamond ring for a quarter of its value before taking off with her cash Monday.
According SPPD Sgt. Cody Madison, the 21-year-old Hispanic woman was approached December 19 by the two unidentified men in a newer model Honda Civic as she was walking in the 400 block of North Ojai Road at about 11 a.m.
“The men allegedly told the woman they were selling a $20,000 diamond ring at a reduced price,” of $5,000 said Madison.
The woman agreed to purchase the ring, and the two men then allegedly drove the woman to her bank at the 500 block of West Harvard Boulevard.
Madison said she withdrew $5,000 from her account, “But when she gave the two suspects the money, the men fled from the scene.”
The woman, added Madison, “Never received or saw the diamond ring...”
The first suspect is described as a clean-shaven male Hispanic about 30 years old, 5 foot 8 inches tall with a thin build. He also has a scar on his nose and was wearing a yellow and blue shirt, blue jeans and brown shoes.
The second suspect is described as a 40-to-50-year-old male Hispanic with a heavy build, light brown hair and a mustache. He was also wearing glasses, a brown jacket, a button-down shirt, black dress pants and black dress shoes.
If anyone has any information regarding this crime they are asked to contact Detective Shane Norwood at (805) 525-4474 x 287 or at snorwood@spcity.org
“The Santa Paula Police Department would like to take this opportunity to educate the public not only about this scam,” but also on how to avoid other types of scams.
Madison said some “universal rules” to avoid becoming a victim include “If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is...that’s a biggie.”
A bank, credit card company, or utility company will never ask for your personal information by email, “whether you have an account or not, period.”
Never give out personal information, credit card or account numbers on calls/emails/texts that you didn’t initiate.
Before clicking on any links within emails or text messages, be sure to confirm the sender is legitimate.
Always be on the lookout for bad English as well as grammatical and spelling errors.
Madison said, “If you have been the victim of a scam or believe someone is attempting to scam you, please contact the Santa Paula Police Department at the non-emergency number of 805-525-4474 so that we can have an officer contact you,” for information on the incident or to help you avoid becoming the victim of a scam.
