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New photos have been released by the Montgomery County Department of Police regarding a theft that was reported on Monday, April 10, involving at least four people who pulled off a scam to rob a woman out of thousands of dollars.
The incident was reported at the TJMaxx store in the 20900 block of Frederick Road last night.
According to police, an employee was approached by two suspects who asked if she spoke Spanish, and when she confirmed that she did, the dubious duo asked for directions to a church in the area that helps immigrants.
The conversation then led the three to the victim’s car, where they continued the conversation.
One of the suspects began to cry and shared a sob story about how she had a winning “Mega Millions” lottery ticket, but she could not claim the prize because she was undocumented, officials said.
They then made a phone call to a third suspect, who pretended to work for the “lottery company,” and said that the purported winner could claim her prize if she had “guarantors” and they would need to come to an office in Rockville with “like $10,000 in cash.”
Police say that one of the suspects proceeded to get out of the car and came back 20 minutes later with $10,000 in cash. They then asked their victim if she could also contribute another $10,000 to help their cause.
The victim drove to her own home and retrieved the money and put it in her glovebox. At that point.
Things took a turn for the even stranger after that.
One of the suspects subsequently began complaining about a stomach ache and asked the victim to drive to a drug store. She then went inside to buy medicine, but when she returned to her car three minutes later, the suspects were gone and the cash was taken from the glovebox.
Detectives say that they believe the suspects are targeting older or vulnerable victims. They are advising the public to be aware of the schemers and circumstances surrounding the thefts.
Anyone with information regarding the suspects or the crime has been asked to contact investigators at the Montgomery County Department of Police by calling (240) 773-6237 or Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).
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