Two women – dressed in medical scrubs – are accused in a scam in Carlsbad where they convinced victims to help them cash fake checks totaling $44,000.
According to the Carlsbad Police Department (CPD) and San Diego County Crime Stoppers, the unknown women targeted victims on Jan. 10 at several Bank of America locations in Carlsbad.
One woman drove a getaway car while the other woman got out of the car and spoke with unsuspecting victims in the bank parking lots. That suspect would ask each victim for help cashing a check for her, usually in the amount of $4,900. The victims were offered $40 in exchange for the help.
A few days later, the victims learned the checks were returned as fraudulent, investigators said. In all, the suspects managed to get $44,000 worth of fake checks cashed.
Currently, the CPD is investigating four such reports of the scam in Carlsbad. Photos of the suspects were publicly released for the first time Wednesday. At this point, the identities of the suspects are unknown.
Police said the public should be cautious in bank parking lots and contact authorities if they are approached by either of the women.
Anyone with information on this case can reach out to the CPD Financial Crimes unit at (760) 931-2173 or Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.
