Police Warn Local Shops after Con Artists Short-Change SK Business

SOUTH KINGSTOWN, RI—Police are warning business owners about a group of people who apparently scammed a local store out of $200 using a common scam to confuse a clerk while making change for large bills.

Police said in a post on their Facebook page that the suspects are two middle-aged females and a man in his 20s, all possibly of Indian descent.

The man and one of the women asked a cashier to make change for several $100 bills.

“While the cashier counted smaller bills, they intervened and caused confusion for the cashier. The cashier lost track of his count but believed he ended up giving proper change,” polic said. “It was later determined that his register drawer was $200 short. The second female attempted to do the same thing at the customer service desk but, after her numerous attempts to confuse the employee, was turned away.”

The suspects left in a mid-2000s Chevy Venture minivan with an unknown registration plate.

If you have any information, you can call South Kingstown police at 401-783-3321.

Police said they want business owners to remind their employees to be on the lookout for the scam.