3 Colombian migrants charged with scamming woman out of thousands at store Chicago suburb
ADDISON, Ill. (CBS) – Three migrants from Colombia were charged with allegedly scamming a woman out of thousands of dollars earlier this month, DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin and Addison Interim Chief of Police Roy Selvik announced Saturday.
Miguel Pena-Gomez, 43, Liliana Nagles-Cuesta, 49, and Angela Posada-Acosta, 45, appeared in their first court appearance on Friday, where they were denied bail. All three were charged with one count of theft by deception of $5,000 or more from someone over 60 years old.
The DuPage County State's Attorney's Office said on Nov. 7, Addison Police officers responded to a call at Caputo's, located at 510 W. Lake Street, for a report of a theft by deception.
An investigation revealed that Pena-Gomez approached the victim, asked her for help, and claimed that he had a winning lottery ticket worth $6 million. He told the victim that he needed money to collect the winnings.
During the conversation, Nagles-Cuesta approached them and asked if they needed help and that she spoke Spanish. She then allegedly pretended to contact lottery authorities to see how much money was necessary to collect the winnings, which she then told the victim was $30,000, prosecutors said.
When the victim told them she did not have $30,000, Nagles-Cuesta offered to get money from her account to help and told them she was going to the bank. She returned a short time later, and she, Pena-Gomez, and the victim then got into the victim's car and drove to the victim's bank. The victim withdrew $20,143 and then drove back to Caputo's. Nagles-Cuesta then left the victim and Pena-Gomez and told them she was returning to her bank to withdraw more money.
Prosecutors said a short time later, Pena-Gomez allegedly told the victim that he was not feeling well and asked her to go into the store to get him some medicine. The victim went into the store and left the money in the glove compartment of her car, and when she returned, Pena-Gomez took the money and fled. Nagles-Cuesta also never returned.
The third offender, Posada-Acosta, was present during the incident as a lookout. All three were taken into custody in Crystal Lake without incident on Thursday.
"It is alleged that these three defendants preyed on an innocent, trusting woman with a good heart, scamming her out of more than $20,000," Berlin said. "With holiday shopping underway, I fear we may see an increase in this type of con. I urge everyone please be aware of your surroundings and, if approached, do not take people at their word, especially if they are asking you for money."
Pena-Gomez, Nagles-Cuesta, and Posada-Acosta are due back in court on Dec. 11 for arraignment.
No further information was available.
