Man indicted in 'grandparent scam' that hit Western Pa. residents

An 89-year-old hearing impaired man received a call from someone he believed was his son on Dec. 12, stating he had been arrested for a drunken driving crash in Baltimore.

Shortly after, the man received another phone call from someone posing as an attorney. This person said that the son had injured a pregnant woman in another vehicle, was being held in jail and needed cash to pay a bond.

The alleged victim, who lives in Fox Chapel, drove to a local PNC Bank branch and withdrew $6,000, which he then put inside an envelope labeled with his name and a case number before placing the envelope inside a sealed box with the words “legal documents.” A driver came and picked up the money, according to the affidavit.

Later the same day, the alleged victim received another phone call requesting an additional $19,000 for further charges against his son. His wife called their son who revealed he was in Tennessee and had not been arrested, the affidavit said.

The man then realized he had been scammed.

On Friday, the FBI in Pittsburgh held a news conference warning the public about this recent “grandparent scam,” where elderly individuals receive phone calls from people impersonating loved ones or an attorney that is representing a family member and ask for money urgently.

Between October 2024 and January 2025, at least five elderly individuals from Western Pennsylvania were victimized by the scam and defrauded out of more than $50,000, according to a court affidavit.

“I can’t even guess how many victims we might have,” said Kevin Rojek, FBI special agent in charge at the Pittsburgh Field Office.

On Friday, 34-year-old Luis Alfonso Bisono Rodriguez, a Cleveland resident, originally from the Dominican Republic, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of receipt of stolen money that crossed a state border, officials said.

Rodriguez was arrested on March 21, and charged with five-counts and is an alleged member of an organized crime group operating across Pennsylvania and Ohio to defraud victims in the Western Pennsylvania and elsewhere out of tens of thousands of dollars.

During the investigation, several police departments obtained police reports of similar scams targeting senior citizens. Pennsylvania areas where the scam has been running so far include Millcreek, Grove City, Scott, Fox Chapel, Hermitage and Findlay, the affidavit said.

Victims reported that once they put the money inside the envelope a courier would come to pick up the money. Some of the victim’s reported seeing Uber or Lyft signs in the windows of cars. Rodriguez was captured on surveillance videos from various retail establishments meeting the drivers and receiving the stolen money, according to court documents.

Further investigation revealed that the drivers were not aware of what they had been delivering and none of the drivers had been charged, Rojek said.

“It’s difficult to classify what people [drivers] should be looking for,” Rojek said.

After obtaining the money, Rodriguez then wire transferred large amounts of the fraud proceeds to the Dominican Republic and into bank accounts.

Rojek said he believes there is at least one other person who is helping from the Dominican Republic and that Rodriquez was in the U.S. on a visa, which expired in 2022.

Rodriguez is currently being held in Cleveland but will be transported to Pittsburgh for trial, Rojek said.

The FBI urged elderly people who believe they may have also been scammed to come forward.

“Please know you are not alone,” Rojek said.