PROVIDENCE – Two men are accused of serving as couriers in lucrative “grandparent scams” ​​targeting people in Rhode Island, Massachusetts and nine other states.

Roberto Munoz, 29, of Hialeah, Florida, and Jason Rhodes, 34, of Flushing, New York, face federal charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire theft aggravated identity. U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Cunha announced Monday.

Warwick police arrested the two men in March after local residents reported they gave thousands of dollars to people who convinced them their grandchildren were in trouble and needed help. The U.S. Attorney’s Office now says that as couriers, Munoz and Rhodes collected approximately $230,000 from victims in more than a dozen communities in Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

People who run “grandparent scams” often pose as relatives, lawyers or police officers, who call victims and convince them that a loved one, usually a grandchild, has been arrested and needs money to be released on bail. Scammers will instruct victims to give cash to a courier, who will come to their home or meet them at a drop-off location.

Couriers typically work in a particular geographic area, where others involved in the schemes will provide them with information and instructions about the victims they encounter.

In early March, Warwick police received three complaints in a week from people contacted by scammers – and their investigation led them to arrest Munoz and Rhodes.

A Warwick couple told police they gave a courier $18,000 to cover what they were told was a deposit for their grandson, but were then contacted again and told that their grandchild was being sued for $100,000 and they now had to give $40,000. , according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The couple contacted the police, who set up surveillance inside and outside the home while waiting for the courier to arrive. Rhodes was arrested at the home when he arrived to collect the money, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, while Munoz was arrested while sitting in a vehicle waiting for Rhodes.

Authorities searched the vehicle and a hotel room registered to Rhodes and seized more than $60,000 and other items. Ultimately, Warwick police and Homeland Security investigations determined that the two men allegedly received the names and addresses of grandparent scam victims in Coventry, Newport, Cranston, Hopkinton, East Greenwich, West Greenwich and Smithfield , all in Rhode Island, and in Braintree, Hanover, Plymouth, Scituate, Cohasset, Stoughton and Lakeville, Massachusetts, and in Stanhope, Iowa.

Device allegedly seized from Rhodes contained chat messages from Munoz that appear to contain names and addresses of target victims and their grandchildren in Wisconsin, Illinois, Virginia, Kansas, Maryland, Tennessee , Iowa, North Carolina and New Jersey, according to the United States. Law firm.

Munoz and Rhodes appeared before a federal magistrate judge Friday and were released on unsecured bail and under GPS electronic monitoring.

Amanda Milkovits can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow her @AmandaMilkovits.