A Red Bank man was taken for cash and a cellphone in a daylight scam attempt that turned into a strong-arm robbery in Shrewsbury Friday morning, police said.
The unidentified victim appeared to have been the target of a ‘pigeon drop‘ scam, in which a con man pretends to have found a large sum of money, said Detective Sergeant Bobby Turner.
Aided by an accomplice, who pretends to chance upon the conversation, the scammer aims to get the victim to put up good-faith cash on the belief that he’s in for a share of a windfall.
But the scam turned into a mugging, when one of the two perpetrators grabbed the victim by the arms and the other stole $600 and a cellphone from him, Turner said.
The incident occurred in broad daylight in the vicinity of the Bagel Masters store on Broad Street around 9 a.m., Turner said.
The robbers were said to be Hispanic men in their 20s. An investigation is underway, Turner said.
