CAMARILLO : Officials Warn of Lottery Ticket Scam
Officials from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department are warning residents, particularly members of the Latino community, to beware of con artists who used a lottery ticket scheme to scam a 72-year-old woman out of more than $13,000 two days before Christmas
The woman had been shopping at a Lucky supermarket in Camarillo when she was approached by a man who claimed to have a winning lottery ticket worth $84,000, said Sgt. Keith Lazz.
The man said he couldn’t cash the ticket because he was an illegal immigrant, Lazz said, but offered the woman $5,000 if she cashed the ticket for him.
Using a partner who pretended to be a stranger willing to put up $16,000, Lazz said, the man was able to persuade the woman to withdraw more than $13,000 from her savings account. The two men stole the money after persuading the woman to leave the money with them.
Lazz said the scam has been pulled before in Ventura County, mostly victimizing Spanish-speaking residents.
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