Scam alert, man posing as an officer

BAY MINETTE, Ala. - Bay Minette police say a man is pretending to be a police officer and scamming people out of hundreds of dollars. Investigators say the man is calling people and telling them a loved one needs bail money to get them out of jail, and people are falling for it.

Bay Minette police said they have surveillance images of the suspect spending the almost $350 he scammed out of a Bay Minette woman.

Officers say he may be a scam artist, but he's also pretty smart.

Sgt. Lester Banfield says he has a well-planned scheme that has worked more than one time. Four other similar crimes have popped up in Santa Rosa and Escambia County, Florida.

"I've worked on two other suspects in this case. I've eliminated both of them. I have no idea who he is, where he is or where he is from," said Banfield.

This is how police say he is getting away with the scam. The man calls his victim and tells them a loved one of theirs is in jail and needs money to get out. Meanwhile, the victim on the other end doesn't think twice, believes the scam, and sends money through Wal-Mart money-gram.

Officers say at that point, he picks up the money with a fake name. The Wal-Mart clerk never asks for an ID because she doesn't have to.
As long as the man knows the answer to a pre-arranged test question he can get the money. No questions asked.

"As soon as he verified that she sent the moneygram, he picked it up. Obviously watching the video, he spent almost all the money," Banfield added.

Detectives say the suspect walked out of the store as if nothing has happened. But police say his entire plan is wrong and they want to find him.

Police say the victim was never suspicious because she thought she was truly helping a friend. The victim finally found out she had been scammed when she saw that friend, the suspect called about, only hours later.

And of course, that friend knew nothing about what happened. By the way, police officers never call you to bail out your friend or relative.