Florida and New York men accused of scamming people out of thousands in southern New England

Two men are facing charges after people were scammed in Rhode Island and possibly beyond.

According to police, on Thursday, a victim reported to the Warwick Police Department that they were the victims of a scam.

Officer Chretien identified this scam as ongoing and brought Detectives in to assist. A plan was formulated to attempt a controlled delivery to the suspect on Friday at the victim’s residence. 

On Friday morning, members of the Warwick Police Department’s Night Detectives, Special Operations Group, Financial Crimes and Criminal Investigations units began working with the victims to ensure the suspect was still planning on receiving the victim’s money.

At approximately 2:00 p.m., Detectives inside the residence observed a subject walking up to the residence matching the description of a suspect from a similar scam that had just been reported in Coventry, RI. After delivery was made, Detectives Arico and Sarkisian took the subject into custody after a brief foot pursuit. Detectives conducting surveillance apprehended the suspected getaway driver.

Both suspects were taken into custody for Obtaining Property Under False Pretenses and Conspiracy-Felony.

The suspects were identified as 34-year-old Jason Rhodes from Flushing, NY (suspect at the residence) and 29-year-old Robert Munoz from Miami, FL (getaway driver). 

As part of the investigation, a court authorized search warrant for a Warwick hotel room registered in Munoz’s name was executed. Detectives seized evidence connecting the suspects to other “grandparent scams” as well as a large sum of money.

This remains an active investigation. Detectives are looking at other evidence to try to locate other victims, as this scam is being reported throughout Rhode Island. The Warwick Police Department is urging anyone who believes they may be the victim of this or a similar scam to contact their respective police department.