Police arrest man in alleged lottery scam

Glendale police have arrested a 62-year-old Los Angeles man on suspicion of felony financial elder abuse in relation to an alleged lottery phone scam.

The investigation into Carl Bullock’s activities began in March when a Glendale bank employee contacted the Glendale Police Department with concerns about the well-being of an elderly female customer who had several large withdrawals from her bank account, according to police spokeswoman Tahnee Lightfoot.

The investigation found that an 83-year-old Glendale woman received a phone call at her residence around March 21 from a caller by the name of Christopher Jones. The man informed the victim she had won $7 million in a lottery and, in order to receive the winnings, she was to mail $6,000 in cash to Bullock, Lightfoot said.

Over the course of several weeks, the victim was scammed out of $52,000 in cash and prepaid “Green Dot MoneyPak” cards that Jones allegedly convinced her to buy in order to receive her lottery winnings, according to police.

MoneyPak payments were made by phone to Jones, while Bullock reportedly contacted the victim on four occasions at her residence and obtained cash in various amounts.

A lengthy investigation by detectives led to the arrest of Bullock in Los Angeles on April 23, Lightfoot said.

Detectives have located additional victims in 12 other states involving Bullock with a total loss of approximately $100,000, she added.

Glendale Police Department detectives and the U.S. Postal Service are continuing their investigation and future criminal charges are pending.

The Police Department recognizes that many residents have been victimized by such scams. Detectives are asking those who have been victimized specifically by Bullock or Jones to contact Det. Peter Robinson at (818) 548-3101.
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Follow Mark Kellam on Twitter: @LAMarkKellam.

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