Trio Arrested in Scam Where Victims Are Lured to Local Bank Parking Lots

Michael Rescigno, Ronald Garcia, and Edward Thomas. (Photos: Palm Beach County Jail)

Three local men were arrested Tuesday in Delray Beach on charges that they took part in a scheme to defraud a woman out of nearly $10,000 by posing as a federal banking investigator and having the woman drive to a branch on Federal Highway, according to police reports.

Michael Rescigno, 23, of Greenacres; Ronald Garcia, 19, of West Palm Beach; and Edward Thomas, 29, of West Palm Beach, each face a felony charge of organized scheme to defraud under $20,000. Garcia also is charged with possession of a firearm during a felony, and Thomas with possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana.

According to the Delray Beach Police Department, a woman who was visiting from Texas told police she received a call Monday from a man who identified himself as an investigator with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. He said her bank accounts had been compromised, police said. She told him to call back the next day, and he did.

Police said the caller then directed her to withdraw $9,895 in cash from her Chase Bank account, saying it would be used to open a “safe account.” She was told a “bank courier” would pick up the money.

The woman became suspicious and contacted an acquaintance, who alerted police. A police sergeant spoke with her by phone while detectives set up in the parking lot of the bank, at 1755 S. Federal Highway, which is shared with a restaurant. Police said she still had the cash when officers arrived.

According to the reports, the caller told the woman he knew marked police cars were in the lot and directed her where to park. Police said that indicated he was nearby.

A man in a red Toyota SUV arrived to collect the money. Police said he told officers he was an Uber driver who had been hired through the app to pick up a package and take it to a nearby CVS, and that the ride was requested by someone named “Michael.” The caller hung up as officers approached the driver, police said. The driver was not charged.

Detectives said they had noticed a gray Kia moving between parking spots nearby, its driver apparently talking on speakerphone. The Kia left the lot as officers contacted the Uber driver, police said, and detectives stopped it on northbound Interstate 95 for a cracked windshield and a driver with a suspended license.

Police said Garcia was driving, Thomas was in the front passenger seat and Rescigno was in the back. Detectives said they smelled burnt marijuana, and found a Taurus 9 mm handgun in Garcia’s waistband and a small amount of marijuana in Thomas’ pocket. The marijuana field-tested positive, according to police.

Officers called the number that had contacted the woman, and a phone that had been in Garcia’s possession rang, police said. A database search showed the number was registered to Garcia, according to the reports.

Thomas and Rescigno declined to speak with detectives without a lawyer. Garcia told police he, Thomas and Rescigno had driven to Delray Beach for lunch and stopped at a pharmacy, but he could not say where. He said he was not paying attention to whether anyone was on the phone, according to the reports.

Garcia and Thomas were still lodged in the Palm Beach County Jail in lieu of $200,000 and $101,000 bond, respectively, while Rescigno was released on $5,000 bond.