Rock Hill woman sent $5K in cash to bail scam. But this story has a happy ending

For one Rock Hill woman, Christmas came a week early. It was the return of $5,000 in her own cash that she almost lost in a bail bond scam, police said.

The woman received a call Monday, claiming her son was in jail in Charlotte and needed bail money, according to a Rock Hill Police Department incident report. The woman put the $5,000 into a FedEx package and shipped it, police said.

The woman then talked to family members and learned her son was not in jail. She quickly called police.

Rock Hill officers called FedEx to say the package was part of a scam.

FedEx officials told police officers the package would be held by the company before it was delivered, so the woman could get her money back, said Rock Hill police Capt. Mark Bollinger.

“This was a scam that almost happened, but the money was intercepted before it was lost,” Bollinger said. “We urge people to be careful and vigilant, and not to fall for any scam.”

Bollinger said police and court officials would never call a family member to say bond money is needed.

This latest scam is part of a trend of schemes that York County police agencies have warned about during the holiday season.

Other South Carolina scams have involved phony solicitations for money from fake police officers and agencies.

A Rock Hill woman lost $160,000 in a Twitter scam where a person on the social media channel fraudulently claimed online to be country music star Dierks Bentley.

The Herald is not identifying the woman involved in the latest scam attempt for safety reasons.

Rock Hill officers on Monday contacted the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department to find out who is behind the bond scam in North Carolina. No arrests have been made, but the case remains active in both Carolinas, Bollinger said.

This story was originally published December 18, 2018 at 11:49 AM with the headline "Rock Hill woman sent $5K in cash to bail scam. But this story has a happy ending."