PERRYVILLE, Md. — Perryville police learned of the 85-year-old victim’s plight more than 26-hundred miles away from where she lives in Orange County, California.
“The suspect somehow got her information and contacted her, advising her that her Amazon account had been compromised, which is what we see with these text messages that your Amazon account had been compromised,” said Perryville Police Chief Bob Nitz.
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A scam, investigators traced back across the country to a man named Harold Lahr living in Perryville.
Lahr instructed the woman to send money to a post office box he had in Perryville assuring her that it would be reimbursed.
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She then sent four separate cashier’s checks ranging in amounts from 35 thousand to 45 thousand dollars, as well as sending a small box with 8,000 dollars in cash.
“They’re very cunning and, total, we’ve identified that she’s been bilked out of 360 thousand total, but what we can prove in Maryland was 163 thousand,” added Nitz.
Lahr is being held with no bond, and an investigation continues into whether he may have other victims out there.
He now faces a series of charges including one count of obtaining property from a vulnerable adult, but it should be noted that the suspect also is no spring chicken.
He’s 81-years-old.
“I think that plays into the believability factor of 81 contacting an 85-year-old, and again, these individuals are cunning,” said Nitz, “They’ll convince you not to talk to your family members, not to talk to your friends so it’s really important from a caretaker responsibility that we’re checking on our friends and family.”
Pending the outcome of the ongoing investigation, police can’t say if the victim recovered any of the money she mailed to the swindler.
