Nutley Grandparent Scammed By ‘John William’ For Thousands: Cops

NUTLEY, NJ — Nutley police say that a scamster used a local grandparent’s concern for their grandson to trick them out of thousands of dollars last month.

According to the Nutley Police Department, the victim said that they got a call from someone who they thought was their grandson on Nov. 28. The caller said that he was in an accident in Connecticut.

Soon afterwards, the victim got another call from someone who identified himself as “John William.” The caller said that the victim’s grandson was under arrest for multiple charges, and that he had been injured in an accident and was in the hospital.

The caller told the victim to send a $2,250 bond to secure their grandson’s release. The victim then sent a $2,250 payment via Western Union in the name of “John William,” police said.

A short time later, the came person called back demanding more money. He told the victim to send two Money Grams: one for $1,000 and another for $1,250. After sending the payment, Money Gram employees notified the victim that they were possibly being scammed, and they stopped the transaction, police said.

The victim then contacted their grandson, who wasn’t injured and hadn’t been in an accident, police said.

The victim contacted Nutley police soon afterwards, authorities said.

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