Man Charged in Car Repair Scam on Elderly

Sheriff’s deputies in Temple City on Tuesday charged a La Puente man with fraud in connection with a parking lot scam that has victimized elderly people throughout the San Gabriel Valley, Deputy Dwight Develyn said.

In the alleged scam, James Stannard, 37, waited in shopping center parking lots and tampered with the cars of elderly shoppers as they entered stores. When the drivers had trouble starting their cars, Stannard is reported to have approached them and introduced himself as an automotive store employee, Develyn said.

“He approached them as a good Samaritan and said, ‘Give me $120 and I’ll go get a part at the store and you’ll be on the road,’ ” Develyn said. “He’d go and return with a fake receipt and fix the car. He was very emphatic about getting paid.”

Stannard is on parole after serving about 16 months in state prison for the same type of crime, Develyn said. Tuesday’s arrest took place in a Temple City shopping center parking lot where deputies found “some fake receipts all ready to go” in Stannard’s 1990 red Pontiac Firebird, Develyn said. Anyone with information about the scams is asked to call (818) 285-7171.