A 77-year-old man was scammed out of $10,000 earlier this week in Maryland and police now say two people in Virginia were taken advantage of in similar ways.
Tuesday, a 68-year-old man was approached by two men with heavy accents at a parking lot of the Home Depot in Merrifield area of McLean at approximately 3 p.m. The suspects asked the man for directions and help and as the conversation developed, the men convinced the suspect to withdraw thousands of dollars from a bank. Police said the suspects somehow took the money from the victim.
The day before that, a 30-year-old man was in the parking lot of another Home Depot in the Seven Corners around 3 p.m. He was approached by a man who asked him for a ride to D.C. and showed him a large amount of cash.
The two men conversed on the drive and the suspect convinced the victim to withdraw $9,000 from an ATM, saying he didn't trust U.S. banks. The victim gave the suspect the money.
In both cases, suspects are described as black men in their 40s, 50s or 60s with heavy foreign accents.
Officials have not confirmed whether the McLean cases are related to the Maryland incidents, but are recommending residents take precautions and be wary of strangers in parking lots.
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Police say some incidents may not have even been reported.
"Sometimes people are embarrassed to report something like this," Lucy Caldwell with the Fairfax County Police Department said.
If you have any information, call police at 1-866-411-TIPS.
