EVERETT, Mass. — A New York man is facing charges after police say he swindled a cancer-stricken Vietnam War veteran from Everett out of $20,000.
Hongfei Huang was arrested Friday on charges including larceny over $1,200 by false pretense, larceny over $250 from a disabled person over the age of 60, and attempted larceny from a disabled person over the age of 60, according to the Everett Police Department.
Everett officers launched an investigation after a 77-year-old Everett housing resident reported that he had been scammed out of $20,000 on Thursday night, police said. They later learned that the victim was approached a second time and asked to produce another $32,000 in cash.
An undercover operation was initiated in an attempt to lure the suspect out and after “several hours of planning and patience” Huang arrived and was arrested, according to police.
The victim was identified in a GoFundMe as Purple Heart recipient Charles Fagone.
“Fagone was recently scammed out of $20,000 of his hard-earned savings. He is also currently battling cancer,” the GoFundMe organizer wrote. “Let’s come together for this Purple Heart Veteran who sacrificed so much for this country so many years ago.”
Everett Police Chief Paul Strong praised Sergeant Dupont and Officer Monzione for their efforts that ultimately led to Huang’s arrest.
“I would personally like to commend all of the officers from the patrol division and detectives involved in this case for putting in the extra effort to make sure that one of our residents of housing, a Vietnam veteran, was assisted in a professional and respectful manner, making every effort to aid above and beyond, in this particular case,” Strong said in a statement.
Strong also urged the public to remind elderly family members to be vigilant of scammers.
“This is unfortunately another case where these vile people prey on our unsuspecting elderly. Please remind your elderly family members that if anyone attempts to reach out to them by phone or email asking for a large sum of money it is a scam,” Strong added. " It’s probably also a good idea to have a two-step process if your family member wants to withdraw a large amount of money from their bank account a family member needs to be present.”
It wasn’t immediately clear when Huang would be called to court.
An investigation is ongoing.
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