2 arrested during sting in attempted $12K phone scam

Officials believe suspects connected to wider network.

Two New York men were arrested in Hall County last week after sheriff ’s deputies set up a sting operation at the home of a potential phone scam victim, officials said.

Brandon A. Massey, 23, and Jamal Clifford Davis, 28, were arrested Sept. 9 after they arrived at the home of the fraud victims, Hall County Sheriff ’s Office spokesman Derreck Booth said in a news release. Davis was taken into custody without incident but Massey tried to drive away, only to find his car blocked by patrol vehicles.

Both Davis and Massey have been charged with exploiting an elder person, while Massey faces additional charges of fleeing from law enforcement officers, obstruction and reckless driving, Booth said. Both were booked into the Hall County Jail, where they remain without bond.

Booth said the investigation began when the sheriff ’s office was notified of a fraud in progress. The fraud followed a familiar pattern in which a potential victim is contacted about a relative, usually a grandchild, who is supposedly in legal trouble. In many cases, the scammer will ask for a large cash payment of $10,000 or more, which is ostensibly meant to pay jail bond or legal fees. The scammer will then send one or two “representatives” to the victims’ home to collect the money, Booth said.

In this case, a couple from northern Hall County was going to pay the suspected scammers $12,000, according to the sheriff ’s office. However, deputies were able to set up the sting operation at the couple’s home ahead of the cash transaction. The operation led to the arrests of Davis and Massey, Booth said.

As the investigation deepened, Hall deputies connected the case with similar circumstances investigated by other Georgia law enforcement agencies. The networking among jurisdictions led to similar arrests in Walton, Fannin and Hart counties, Booth said.

The case has now widened to include the IRS and FBI after Hall investigators say they identified a “lead scammer” based in New York and New Jersey. The suspect is believed to be the main caller and coordinator of the suspects who collect funds from various victims, the sheriff ’s office said. The scheme appears to reach from the East Coast to as far west as Nebraska.

Hall residents who have received similar calls they believe may be fraudulently requesting cash are asked to call investigators at 770298-4686.