Philly Men Used Instagram To Steal $50K From Montgomery County Banks: Officials

Three Philadelphia men used Instagram as part of a complex bank fraud scheme that resulted in the theft of $50,000 from various banks, including some in Montgomery County, Attorney General Josh Shapiro's office announced on Tuesday.

Shakour S. Smith, 26, Ikeem M. Starks, 25, and Quadir J. Burley, 18, have all been arrested and charged after allegedly using Instagram to connect with individuals who used select banks in Philadelphia and Montgomery County, authorities said.

The trio then encouraged the customers of those banks to "like" their posts, and once they were in contact with them, obtained account information from them, and promised them a cut of the money they said they planned to steal from the banks, Shapiro's office said.

The suspects then deposited fraudulent checks into the victims' bank accounts before withdrawing money.

“These thieves used modern-day social media tools to lure people to help them commit old-fashioned crimes," said Attorney General Shapiro. “Whether the criminals are scammers targeting elderly Pennsylvanians, or con men targeting banks, we’ll hold them accountable.”

The trio were caught when an undercover agent with the Attorney General's Organized Crime Section posed as victim. He met with Burley, who explained the fraud scheme to him, Shapiro said.

The three suspects have been charged with conspiracy to commit theft by deception, multiple counts of dealing in the proceeds of unlawful activities, and related counts, police said. All three have been arrested and are being held in Montgomery County Correctional Facility. A preliminary hearing is forthcoming.

Senior Deputy Attorney General Heather Castellino will prosecute the case.

Patch file photo