Photo: Stock Image
The internet can be a wonderful “window on the world,” allowing for instant access to a wide range of information, entertainment, and educational resources. It can also be an unlocked door into the fears, anxieties, and finances of careless or unsophisticated folks responding to the bogus entreaties of online scammers.
According to Ventura County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Detective Steve Donion, the dangers posed by those engaged in online criminal pursuits were once again evidenced pursuant to an investigation that began on March 5 th when the Moorpark Investigations Bureau was notified by a resident of Texas “concerning their elderly mother being a victim of a scam.” The reporting Texan indicated that their mother had “mailed a significant sum of U.S. currency to an address in Moorpark.”
Clearly smelling a problem, VCSD detectives “immediately responded” to the address where the package full of cash had been sent and discovered that the package had been received by an individual unknown to residents at that address. Residential video surveillance records portrayed a male suspect as he intercepted the package and then drove away in his vehicle.
The following day, March 6, 2024, detectives received a second report of a package addressed to the same individual that was scheduled to be delivered to a vacant address in Chatsworth, CA. The package delivery company contacted the sender who was determined to be an elderly resident of South Dakota. The package delivery company accessed the package and discovered another large sum of cash inside.
The very next day, March 7, 2024, a third package showed up at a Moorpark residence addressed to a person unknown to those at the property. Detectives soon discovered this package was sent by an elderly Florida resident and contained “a significant amount of money.” Uniformed patrol deputies and detectives then established surveillance at the Moorpark residence and waited for a suspect to show up and collect the package.
The cops didn’t have to wait long, and when Monterey Park residents Kaixiang Jia, 20, and Yessen Wang, 18, approached the residence, they were met by cops who promptly took them into custody. Both Jia and Wang were transported to Ventura County Jail, where they were booked on charges of grand theft, conspiracy, theft by false pretenses, identity theft, and possession of burglary tools. Both remain in custody on a no-bail hold.
