LI Man Tried To Scam Grandmother In Fake Arrest Scheme: PD

COPIAGUE, NY — A Copiague man was charged with trying to scam a North Carolina woman by telling her that her grandson had been arrested, and she needed to send money for his bail, Suffolk police announced on Thursday.

Anderson Espinal-Corona, 28, was charged with third-degree attempted grand larceny.

The 80-year-old North Carolina woman received a call Wednesday from a person claiming to be her grandson, police said.

The caller told the woman her grandson was arrested on a charge of driving while intoxicated after a crash that injured another person, police said. The caller put another person on the phone who claimed to be an attorney and told her that he needed $5,200 to bail out her grandson, police said.

The woman was instructed to place the money in a book inside a box and mail it to a residence on Greenlawn Terrace in Copiague, police said.

Detectives intercepted the package and took out the money before the box was delivered to the Greenlawn Terrace address, police said.

Espinal-Corona, 28, who lives at the residence, retrieved the package and was arrested, police said.

He was issued a desk appearance ticket and is scheduled for arraignment at First District Court in Central Islip at a later date. The money will be returned to the woman, police said.