By By BEN RAYMOND LODE / Niles Daily Star
NILES -- Niles Township Police officers broke up a lottery scam with the arrest of a man possibly named Carlos Loaiza on Wednesday.
A township press release, said Loaiza was at Wal-Mart attempting to get a person to give him $5,000 in cash, after which Loaiza allegedly said he would hand over a winning Illinois lottery ticket worth $175,000.
Loaiza was to take the person to the Citgo Gas Station on South 11th Street, where the ticket would be handed over.
Apparently the plan backfired and Loaiza was arrested.
Police believe the person waiting at the gas station was driving a green mini van and left the gas station at high speed around 10:10 a.m. on Wednesday morning.
Police also believe Loaiza had another accomplice in the Wal-Mart parking lot that alerted the green van that Loaiza had been arrested.
The FBI was called in to assist in the investigation.
The local law enforcement agencies would like to alert all area residents to these types of scams. If it sounds to good to be true, it possibly is. If you receive phone calls or e-mails or letters asking for money, never give them any information. Ask them for their phone number and call the police.
Anyone with knowledge of this crime can call the Niles Township Police at 269-683-1780 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-342-STOP.