'Evil spirit' scam plagues Asian immigrants in NYC
NEW YORK (AP) -- One woman was told by a fortune teller that her son was possessed by demons. Another was approached on a Chinatown street by a stranger who eerily claimed her daughter would die in two days. A third was informed that her dead husband was communicating from the grave, telling her to hand over thousands in cash.
"Your son will die in a car accident -- he is cursed," a 65-year-old was told.
In each instance, the women bundled up cash and jewelry in a bag and gave it to strangers they'd just met -- self-proclaimed spiritual healers. They were told the contents would be blessed in an effort to ward off evil spirits, bring good luck to the family or heal a sick child -- they just have to wait a period of time to re-open it.
When they do, they find water bottles, cough drops and beans. But no valuables.
Detectives say there has been a rash in New York of what's known as an evil spirit or blessing scam, where older immigrant women, mostly Chinese, are swindled out of their valuables by clever scammers arriving from China who prey on superstition and fear. In the past six months, two dozen victims have reported valuables stolen -- in some cases more than $10,000 in cash and $13,000 in jewelry, according to police reports. A total of more than $1.8 million has been stolen.
"They know the culture, they know how to talk to these victims to get them to listen," chief New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne said of the grifts. "One person's spirituality is another's superstition, and they prey on that distinction."
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