Man Poses As Lawyer, Tricks Victim Into Sending Him Money: Police

YORKTOWN, NY — A Bronx man was arrested after being accused of posing as a lawyer and calling people to get them to send him money to supposedly get their relatives out of custody.

The Yorktown Police Department said Carlos Colon, 59, of the Bronx, was charged Saturday with third-degree grand larceny, a felony.

Police said, shortly before 9:30 p.m. Saturday, officers received a report of a past theft and began an investigation.

The victim said that, earlier in the day, an unidentified person posing as a lawyer called him and said his granddaughter had been arrested and he would need to collect cash from the victim to help handle her case and free her from custody.

The “lawyer” arranged for hired drivers to pick up envelopes of varying amounts of cash from the victim three different times during the day, police said.

Ultimately, the victim lost $60,100, according to authorities.

The victim later spoke with his granddaughter and realized he had been scammed.

Yorktown police assisted the victim in arranging a fourth pickup of cash with the “lawyer.”

A hired driver who arrived for the pickup was detained by police, but it was determined he was not involved in the scam.

Assisted by the New York Police Department, the Yorktown police conducted a controlled delivery of a decoy envelope at a location in the Bronx where the envelope was supposed to be delivered.

Colon, who was identified as the “lawyer,” took possession of the decoy envelope after it was delivered, police said.

He was arrested at the scene and taken to the Yorktown Police Department for processing.

Colon was arraigned in the Yorktown Justice Court and sent to the Westchester County Jail to reappear in court Thursday.