In a new twist on an old con, a woman in Twentynine Palms found herself swindled out of $2,860 from a long-distance perpetrator. According to Sheriff’s records, the victim told deputies she had supposedly been hired for babysitting work by a man who claimed to be moving from New York and was being stationed aboard the Twentynine Palms Marine Base. The con sent a check with which the victim was supposed to buy toys. The victim cashed the check, bought the toys, and returned $2,860 to the suspect as instructed before learning the check had been reversed. Z107.7 reminds you: never return cash to a stranger in exchange for a check, especially through the mail.
