Police Make Arrests in Newspaper Carrier Scam

A 41-year-old Pewaukee man and a 33-year-old Hartford man were arrested by the this week in connection to a scam where the men are accused of putting fliers in newspaper boxes in an attempt to collect tips from Elm Grove and Brookfield residents.

The fliers said “it’s been a pleasure delivering papers,” according to a search warrant affidavit, and included an address on Silvernail Road and the name of a 33-year-old Hartford man. A detective with the Waukesha Police Department traced the Silvernail Road address to a mailbox that is rented from a UPS store.

A Waukesha detective, who had made contact with 16 of 18 fraud victims, recovered $295 from the mailbox, according to the search warrant affidavit. Also working on the investigation was a U.S. Postal Inspector and the Brookfield and Elm Grove police departments.

The Hartford man admitted to police that he had placed the fliers in the Journal Sentinel customers’ mailboxes after receiving them from his brother-in-law, who is the Pewaukee man. The Pewaukee man was an employee at the Journal Sentinel when he hatched the plan to make money during the holidays, according to the complaint.

“Approximately $600 was obtained through fraud and some of the victims were elderly people who could not afford to send money,” Waukesha Police Capt. Ron Oremus said in an e-mail.

Oremus said the police department is forwarding charges of theft by fraud and mail fraud against the Pewaukee to the Waukesha County District Attorney’s office.

Oremus was unsure Wednesday if charges were going to be forwarded to the district attorney’s office against the Hartford man. Patch is not naming the men until charges are filed.