The search for a con man using handwritten notes to scam gas stations and grocery stores in Clarksville has now become a multi-state investigation.
On Sunday, December 9th, police say the suspect asked for a refund on propane gas tanks at Rinnes Fast and Friendly gas station in Licking, Missouri.
“He said that his wife had came in the day before and purchased three propane tanks, but she could not fit them in her car,” said Cheyenne Wallace, a manager at the store.
He claimed his wife bought them but no longer needed them and said a note was left by a manager for him to get his money back.
“The way he acted was very calm,” Wallace said. “He seemed friendly.”
There was a note left , but police say the suspect wrote it himself and slid it in the propane cage.
More: Fake handwritten notes are at center of intricate new scam
“Each note is tailored to the business,” said Sergeant Griffie Briggs with Clarksville Police Department.
The cashier fell for it, refunding the suspect $157.62 for a purchase that was never made, according to police.
“He needs to be caught,” Briggs said. “He needs to be stopped.”
Briggs said since September, the suspect has pulled the same scam at six businesses throughout Clarksville and now Missouri.
“We could never imagine that this could blow up as big as it did,” Briggs said.
Briggs says the suspect targets gas stations and grocery stores, asking for $150 to $200 in refunds for items never purchased.
In each case, there’s a handwritten note and a believable excuse.
“Tells them that his wife purchased one of their products,” Briggs said.
“‘She left them here. I’ve talked to the manager. Can you go look? There may be a note left,'” Briggs said.
A note was left at the Shell gas station on Fort Campbell Boulevard on November 19th.
The clerk refunded him $197, according to police.
Another note was left at IGA grocery store in September.
The suspect got away with $170 dollars for a refund on boxes of frozen crab meat–a purchase that didn’t happen.
“In my career here, I’ve never seen anything like this,” Briggs said.
Briggs said the suspect uses a fake name and never shows ID, making him hard to catch.
He drives a white, Nissan Xterra but surveillance doesn’t capture his tags.
“We have pictures of his car,” Briggs said. “He wears the same hat in every single encounter that we have him on video in.”
“Nobody has been able to identify him.”
Store clerks and business owners hope the scammer is captured soon.
“This guy is out there,” Briggs said. “He is trying very hard to get money from all these businesses.”
