TAMPA - Police are looking for two men they say scammed an elderly man out of $46,000 this week.
According to police, the 76-year-old man was sitting on a bench at Armenia Avenue and St. Isabel Street about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday when two men walked up.
They told the elderly man their mother had left them an inheritance and that her last wish was to give the money to deserving people in the community, said Tampa police spokesman Joe Durkin. The suspects showed the man a large stack that looked like cash but was really newspapers bundled together with one real bill on top, Durkin said. The two men asked the victim to take them to his bank, First National Bank at 3117 W Columbus Drive, to verify he was "established in the community," Durkin said.
At the bank, the elderly man withdrew $46,000 and showed the two men the money. Somehow, the two men switched the real money for the fake bundle and fled, Durkin said.
One suspect, who called himself Carlos, is described as a Hispanic man between 30 and 40 years old with short black hair and prescription eyeglasses. He weighs about 220 pounds and is between 5-foot-9 and 5-foot-11.
The second suspect is also described as a Hispanic man. He is between 40 and 50 years old with a light complexion and short dark hair combed back. He weighs about 190 pounds and stands between 5-foot-9 and 5-foot-11.
Anyone with information can call Detective Carlos Navarro at 276-3591 or CrimeStoppers at (800) 877-4371.
