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Jorge Peguero-Mendez, 34, and Richard Quinones-Perez, 24, both of the Bronx, New York, are wanted on charges of theft by deception and conspiracy to commit theft by deception, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said.
An elderly victim from Barnegat was contacted in December 2021 by an individual claiming to be her grandson, authorities said. The individual informed her that he had been involved in a car crash in New York City, and claimed that he was arrested due to the fact that the driver of the other vehicle had sustained injuries, Billhimer said.
The caller then said that a lawyer had been appointed to represent him. The victim subsequently received a second phone call, this time from an individual identifying himself as her grandson’s lawyer, informing her that he could arrange to have her grandson released from custody in exchange for a cash payment of $8,000, authorities said.
She was later met by someone claiming to be a courier, to whom she turned over the $8,000, authorities said. After consulting with family members, the victim realized that her grandson had not, in fact, been arrested and that she was the victim of a scam.
Similar events had recently occurred in Hopewell Township, NJ, and Nassau County, NY.
Peguero-Mendez and Quinones-Perez were identified as the individuals responsible for the scamming incidents, Billhimer said. The investigation further revealed Peguero-Mendez drove Quinones-Perez to the Ocean County area with the intent to procure cash from the victim.
Peguero-Mendez and Quinones-Perez have not yet been apprehended, and warrants for their arrests have been issued and remain outstanding.
Anyone who believes they may have been victimized by these particular defendants, or who are in possession of information as to the whereabouts or either suspect, is urged to contact Officer Robert Armstrong of the Barnegat Township Police Department at (609) 698-5000.
The Barnegat Township Police Department, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Economic Crime Squad, United States Department of Health and Human Services - Office of the Inspector General, Hopewell Township Police Department, and Nassau County New York Police Department, assisted in the investigation.
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