Diamond con artist strikes again, takes woman for $5K


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TAYLORSVILLE — Yet another person has been swindled out of thousands of dollars by what appears to be serial con artists peddling fake diamonds to unsuspecting victims, according to police.

The story has changed little since the first time the scammer struck in mid-February. A woman needs help paying for her husband's medical bills, and has diamonds to sell or use as collateral. The victim agrees to help out and buys the diamonds, only to realize later that they are fake, made only of glass.

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On Feb. 20, the first suspect approached a woman in the Walmart at 5469 S. Redwood Road. She gave the now-familiar story about her husband's hospital bills, offering to sell a diamond to the victim for $5,000 while saying it was worth $14,000, according to Unified Police Lt. Justin Hoyal.

Then a second suspect appeared, saying that she was helping the con artist out by purchasing one of the diamonds for $10,000, Hoyal said.

Once the victim agreed to buy one of the diamonds, they drove to a bank where the first suspect waited in the car as the victim withdrew the $5,000. The second suspect was captured on security cameras inside the bank with the victim, Hoyal said.

Suspect descriptions
Suspect 1: Hispanic female, mid 20's, 4 feet 11 inches tall, 95 pounds, brown hair, brown eyes

Suspect 2: Hispanic female, approximately 40 years old, 5 feet 6 inches tall, 180 pounds

Hoyal said these crimes have some connections and similarities to swindles that occurred in Orem and West Valley City over the last month. He said Unified Police are working with other law enforcement agencies to verify that they are the same suspects.

Police are seeking help in finding the suspects. Anyone with information on the identity of the woman in the photos should call Unified Police at 385-468-9447.

Orem police encouraged citizens not to be taken in by these kinds of cons.

"Lots of scammers out there looking for victims," Orem Deparment of Public Safety Sgt. Craig Martinez told KSL on Feb. 19. "If you're ever approached by someone giving a sob story and asking for money, if you don't know these people, don't give them money. There's too much of a probability that this is a scam, that you're never going to see or hear from these people again."

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David Self Newlin

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