TAMPA, Fla. — Authorities say a scam targeting the elderly across the country has landed two men in jail in Tampa.
Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister announced the arrests of Dontavius Oakley, 35, and Carlton Thomas, 50, Friday morning.
Chronister said the sheriff's office received an anonymous tip on Thursday about a fraud scheme against an elderly person.
That person, a man in New Jersey, sent cash via FedEx to an address in Tampa. Deputies say the package was addressed to Oakley.
According to law enforcement, the man in New Jersey believed Oakley was helping him remove a virus from his computer. When the man realized he could have been scammed, he called police in New Jersey, who in turn notified the sheriff's office.
At a local FedEx distribution center in Tampa, detectives were able to intercept the New Jersey man's package. In addition, they say there were several other packages addressed to Oakley.
Those packages also contained cash from people in Hillsborough County, California, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Oregon and Texas.
Undercover detectives delivered some of those packages containing money to their expected address: a Rodeway Inn Motel located at 6510 Highway 301 in Tampa.
The detectives dropped them off at the lobby and began conducting surveillance on Oakley.
Detectives say they spotted Oakley leaving and followed him.
They pulled him over, and they say Thomas was driving. The pair were arrested.
Oakley faces charges of organized fraud, grand theft second-degree, violation of probation and fleeing to elude. Prior to this arrest, he was on probation until April 2022.
Thomas was wanted on an out-of-state warrant from New Jersey. He was also driving with a counterfeit driver's license.
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