SUMMERFIELD TWP. (WWJ) – Police in Monroe County are asking for help identifying a man who they say scammed an elderly woman while posing as a police officer.
It happened Tuesday in Summerfield Township – just south of Dundee – when the woman got a phone call from a man who identified himself as “James Marcus” with the Dundee Police Department.
The man told the victim her grandson had been involved in a fatal crash and he had been taken to jail and he needed her help paying his bail, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.
The woman, whose age was not released, was confused by the situation, but she went to the bank and withdrew money so she could bail her grandson out of jail.
The suspect later showed up at the woman’s house and collected the “bail money.” But she later contacted her grandson and found out that he had never been involved in a crash and that she had been scammed.
While the suspect was at the woman’s home, his face was captured on her Ring doorbell camera.
The sheriff’s office is asking for tips identifying the scammer. Anyone who recognizes him or knows something about the suspect is asked to call the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office Detective Bureau at 734-240-7530.
Anonymous tips can also be called into Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP or submitted at 1800speakup.org.
While these types of scams have been on the rise in recent years, Sheriff Troy Goodnough is reminding the public that no law enforcement agency will call citizens and demand money or face arrest for any reason.
Should a Monroe County resident encounter this situation, they should call Monroe County Central Dispatch at 734-243-7070 and report the crime. For citizens living outside Monroe County, please contact your local police department or sheriff's office.