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They’ve got hoop schemes.
Young scam artists are conning well-meaning New Yorkers by hijacking their phones and wiring themselves thousands of dollars in what is now deemed by the NYPD to be a city-wide crime pattern.
There have been a total of 39 known incidents across Manhattan and Brooklyn in 2024 with the perpetrators making off with more than $76,500 in total, according to a release from the NYPD.
These scammers approach people and ask for money for their supposedly struggling basketball team.
One person will hijack the victim’s phone under the pretense of providing personal information. Another person will then distract the victim with conversation while thousands of dollars are transferred via apps like Zelle and Venmo.
None of the victims are over the age of 36 and most are in their 20s.
Would-be Good Samaritans have been finessed by these con artists in a bevy of tony neighborhoods including the South Street Seaport, Midtown East, Union Square, the Upper East Side, the Upper West Side, Park Slope, TriBeCa, Wall Street, Madison Square Park, and Brooklyn Heights.
Four people — all age 21 or younger — have been hit with charges of Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree.
Former Miss New York USA Briana Siaca was one such mark.
She was sitting in Madison Square Park, listening to a podcast after undergoing dental surgery, when two teen boys came over and asked for money for their South Bronx basketball team.
“I agreed to give them some money but I didn’t have any cash on me so they accepted Venmo and Zelle,” the Long Island native told The Post back in May.
One boy then grabbed her phone and the other started talking to her about the basketball team.
Jakeem Scott, 21, and Aviana Clark, 19, have each been arrested twice for the money transfer scam in 2024 — once for the same incident.
Jaheem Scott, 21, and Tymir Black, 19, were each arrested once in separate hoodwinks.
All four hail from Jersey City, New Jersey.
A 15-year-old was also arrested in two separate incidents.
The NYPD advises New Yorkers never to give your phone to strangers and be wary of those who ask for wire transfers for sports teams, school activities, or non-profit organizations.
Former Miss New York USA Briana Siaca was hit by the scam earlier this year.
She was sitting in Madison Square Park, listening to a podcast after undergoing dental surgery, when two teen boys came over and asked for money for their South Bronx basketball team.
“I agreed to give them some money but I didn’t have any cash on me so they accepted Venmo and Zelle,” the Long Island native told The Post back in May.
One boy then grabbed her phone and the other started talking to her about the basketball team.
When she realized the boy was taking too long, she snatched her phone back, and the kids ran off.
“I looked at my Zelle account and they sent themselves $2,000,” she said.
No one was arrested or charged in Siaca’s case.
