Grandparent Scammer Suspect Arrested: Beverly Police, DA

BEVERLY, MA — A Texas man was arrested in connection with swindling an elderly Beverly couple out of $60,000, the Essex County District Attorney's office announced. Now they just need to get a governor's warrant to get him to Massachusetts so they can try him.

Beverly police detectives say they were able to trace money that the couple thought they were wiring to help get their grandson out of jail to Jason Temprachah, 27, in Texas and were able to recover nearly all of it: $54,000.

As Patch reported earlier, the couple got a call from a man, who sounded like their grandson. He was crying and he told them he had been arrested while riding in an Uber across state lines. He also told them police found drugs in the car and arrested both him and the driver.

Police say the caller and a man posing as an attorney talked the couple into having them wire $60,000 to get their grandson out of jail. It was only later when they found out their actual grandson had never been arrested.

“Preying on the elderly and their emotions is one of the lowest types of crimes,” Beverly Police Chief John LeLacheur said in a statement released last week by the Essex District Attorney's office, which joined the investigation at the outset.

"Thanks to the quick work of Beverly Police Officer Dana Nicholson and Detective Joshua Pickett, $54,000 of the money was retrieved within a day of the scam being reported, and was returned to the victims," the statement said.

The defendant, who remains in custody in Texas, decided not to wave rendition be extradited to Massachusetts and arraigned in Salem District Court on charges of larceny over $250 on a person over 60, and larceny by false pretense. The DA's office will now seek to get a warrant from the governor's office so that they can try him here.

A media spokesperson from the DA's office said, "It's not hard, it just takes time."

The so-called grandparent scam has been around for many years. And the DA's office warn folks not to fall for it.

“As we always try to remind people, you have to be diligent and on guard against potential scam artists. Please don’t hesitate to contact your local police department if you think you are being victimized,” said Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett.

It's still an active investigation, according to police.

Read the story and tips on how to avoid this scam on Patch:

Couple Loses $60K In 'Grandparent Scam' Beverly Police