Man bilks people out of cash in Boardman, Poland

BOARDMAN — Elderly residents in two jurisdictions have reported being bilked out of cash by a man who claims his wife is stranded and he needs money to help her.

“In this day and age, if a person is doing something like this, they probably have a drug problem,” said Boardman Chief Patrick Berarducci.

In Poland Village, an 86-year-old Massachusetts Avenue woman told police that she was on her front porch about 6 p.m. Aug. 30 when a car pulled in her driveway.

A man got out of the car, walked onto her porch and began talking to her as if he knew her. The woman, who didn’t want her name used, said she didn’t recognize the man but thought maybe she just couldn’t place him.

He told her that his wife’s car broke down on the highway and that he needed $30 to fuel up his car and help her.

For more, read Friday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com