A Bronx man who police say scammed two Long Island grandmothers out of more than $25,000 has been arrested, authorities in Nassau County announced Thursday.
Jaime Castillo, 36, is accused of calling the two women claiming to be Raymond Allen, an attorney representing the victims’ grandchildren.
Castillo allegedly told his victims their grandchild had been arrested and needed money for bail. He would then meet the victims to retrieve the cash, Nassau County police said in a news release.
According to investigators, the first victim was a 90-year-old woman of Port Washington, who gave Castillo a total of $17,600 — which she gathered over two days — on June 2, 2023.
Nearly two months later, on July 24, Castillo allegedly targeted his second victim, an 89-year-old of Hewlett Harbor. She was defrauded out of $7,700, officials said.
Both women believed they were giving the fake lawyer money that would be used to bail out their grandchildren, according to police.
A joint investigation conducted by Nassau police and the Port Washington Police Department later found Castillo to be the person behind the scam.
He was arrested without incident on Wednesday and is scheduled to be arraigned in Nassau District Court on Thursday.
Castillo is charged with four counts of third-degree grand larceny and one count each of second-degree criminal impersonation and first-degree scheme to defraud, elderly person.