Creative Con Targeted At Elderly Asian Women In Sheepshead Bay, Says DA
A 62 year-old Chinese immigrant woman was scammed out of $65,000 in cash and $20,000 in jewelry in what is called the “blessing scam,” said the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office.
On July 29, Yan Chen, 46, and Yuqub Liang, 57, engaged the elderly victim in conversation multiple times, at around Avenue R and East 21 Street to gain the victims trust while Yacheng Chen, 50, stood watch. Yan Chen convinced the woman that she was a clairvoyant, and that she or a member of her family would die because of a curse on her family, according to the DA.
The two defendants then convinced the woman that in order to lift the curse from her family, she would need to bring them large sums of cash and jewelry in a bag to be blessed. The woman obliged and went home to get $15,000, and a safety deposit box key. Next, she went to the safety deposit box, and emptied it of $50,000 in cash and the jewelry, according to the DA.
The victim brought the money and jewelry to the group, and placed everything into a bag as they instructed. The defendants then stole everything and replaced it with water bottles. They placed the bag on the victims shoulder, and told her not to open the bag for a few days, so the cured can finish being lifted, according to the DA.
It was a few days later, when the victim had opened the bag to discovery the water bottles, that she called the police.
Liang was arraigned today before Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun on five charges including second-degree grand larceny, third-degree grand larceny, third-degree criminal possession of stolen property and two counts of fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property. Bail was set at $500,000.
Yan Chen was arraigned last month and held on $250,000 bail. Yacheng Chen will be arraigned on September 28.
“This so-called ‘blessing scam’ is unfortunately common in Asian communities and its targets are usually elderly immigrant women,” said District Attorney Ken Thompson. “People should be aware of these con men and women trying to swindle them out of their hard-earned money. I urge those in the Chinese community to warn their vulnerable family members to avoid falling prey to such schemes.”
We reported last week that a bill was passed to educate senior citizens on scams that are targeted at them. Other scams include phone calls saying the person has won the lottery, and the “fake grandchild scam,” in which the con artist pretends to have the victims grandchild held hostage, and demands a ransom.
“It’s going to educate older adults on how to be cautious and take preventative measures,” said Council Member Chaim Deutsch of the bill. “It’s also important to teach people how to report incidents, and who to call.”