Three Busted in Gwinnett County Phone Scam

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA -- Two women were arrested and an arrest warrant was issued for a state prison inmate Thursday for running a phone scam in Gwinnett County.

A spokeswoman for the Gwinnett County Sheriff's office said the investigation began February 26, when a woman contacted the office saying she'd been a victim of the scam.

She told deputies she received a phone call from someone claiming to be "Deputy Schaffer" from the sheriff's office and saying there was a warrant for her arrest for failing to appear for a grand jury summons.

The victim paid a total of $3,800, through rechargeable money cards and Western Union and MoneyGram wire transfers to the scammers.

Dep. Shannon Volkodav said the sheriff's office had begun investigating similar phone scams in 2014, leading Sheriff Butch Conway to form a multi-jurisdictional task force. That effort recently concluded with the arrests of over 130 people -- many of them inmates using contraband cell phones to pull off the scams.

On Thursday, deputies arrested Marissa Eastwood, 22, of Lilburn, and Chelsea Allyse Guevara, 24, of Lawrenceville, on charges of theft by deception and conspiracy to commit theft by deception.

A warrant was obtained for Nicholas Brady Kennedy, 26, an inmate at Autry State Prison, on a conspiracy charge.

Lt. Col. Carl Sims said in a news release that Kennedy was transferred to a maximum security facility and that dozens of contraband cellphones were found as a result of the warrant against him.

“I don’t like seeing innocent people being victimized by anyone, but even less so by state prison inmates," Sheriff Conway said in a written statement. "They rob their victims of much more than money -- they rob them of their sense of well-being. I am committed to doing everything within my power to stop them."

Conway asked that residents speak with their family members and friends who are elderly and do not use the internet or social media to make sure they know no government agency will ask for payment of fines over the phone, especially using money cards or wire transfers.