On February 24, 2020, Officer Elisha Adams of the San Rafael Police Department received a call of a theft by false pretenses.  Officer Adams responded to the residence of a man and a woman who live in the City of San Rafael. 

The couple told Officer Adams that on February 24, 2020 at about 7:00am they received a call from a person claiming to work for a law office and was calling them on behalf of their grandson.  The caller said that their grandson had been arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol and he was working on obtaining a lower bail amount which needed to be paid in cash.  At this point, the “law office employee” handed the phone to a person who claimed to be their grandson and he sounded in distress.  They told the San Rafael couple that they needed $11,250.00 for bail.

Fearing that their grandson was in trouble, they agreed to provide the money but they did not have the means to handle the request right away.  The caller told the couple to handle the matter privately and not to speak to other family members about this matter.  The couple went to a local bank where they had to obtain a personal loan for the bail amount.  After the caller was notified that they obtained the money, he stated that the local bail agents were very busy and that he would send a delivery carrier to pick up the funds. 

At about 1:00pm, a younger, thin, white male dressed in dark clothing showed up at their residence.  They did not ask any questions and handled the person an envelope containing the bail amount.  He took the envelope and left the area on foot.  No vehicle was seen by the victims. 

At about 5:00pm, they called their grandson to confirm that he was released from jail and learned that he was never detained by law enforcement and that they were the victim of a scam.  They immediately called SRPD and made a police report.  A SRPD Detective will be assigned this case in an attempt to identify the suspect(s).    

These types of scams are commonplace throughout our country.  The suspects often prey on older victims, taking advantage of them by scaring them into paying money.  The suspects often tell the victims to keep the information to themselves in an attempt to isolate them from people who will stop this scam from taking place.  If you find yourself in a situation where you are unsure if you are being scammed, please call your local police department and discuss the scenario with them.