Kejan Haynes
Police are investigating two unrelated incidents of scammers using social media to find victims. In the most recent incident, a 32-year-old Chaguanas man drove to Barataria, on Thursday to meet someone he met on Facebook to buy power washers.
The man told police he went to Eastern Main Road near a gas station, where he was contacted via phone call by someone claiming to be the seller, instructing him to pick up a man, identified as the seller's son.
After picking up the man, the victim handed over $6,400 cash.
The man got out of the victim's car and walked into a nearby building, promising to return shortly with the power washers but never returned.
The victim tried calling the seller several times but was unsuccessful.
In the second incident on January 6, a 37-year-old Longdenville man who advertised having a Jacuzzi for sale on Facebook was contacted by someone who claimed to be interested in buying the item.
The man was visited by someone claiming to be an employee of the person interested in buying the Jacuzzi.
A photo of what appeared to be the receipt of a bank transfer was sent to the victim, convincing him that money for the item was paid, as the suspect left with the Jacuzzi after loading it onto a van.
However, when the victim visited two Chaguanas banks on Tuesday, he was told that no transfers were made to his account.
Both incidents, police said are considered Larceny Trick, which uses deception to obtain someone else's property or cash.
Under the Larceny Act, someone convicted of the offence can face a fine of $10,000 or ten years in prison.
