Fake Cops Grift Man Out Of $250 At Times Square Subway Station

Jen Chung

Published May 12, 2015

Modified May 12, 2015

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A pair of hustlers are wanted for duping a young man into thinking they were cops—and forcing him to pay a "fine" in Times Square.

According to the (real) NYPD, the incident occurred at 3:40 a.m. on Saturday, April 18th: A 22-year-old man had entered the Times Square subway station when he was approached by two male suspects who "stated that they were police officers and that the victim had committed a violation. The suspects then said that the fine could be paid to them. The victim then handed the suspects $250 and both fled on foot."

Pro tip: Real cops will give you a ticket or a summons or drag you to the Tombs—they don't ask you to pay cash on the spot. (Crooked cops are another story.)

Somehow the victim managed to take photos of the suspects, which investigators have released in hopes of finding the perps.

Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS. The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers Website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or texting their tips to 274637(CRIMES) then enter TIP577.