Local police say they arrested a man who was impersonating an officer.
A Belmont County resident was scammed out of hundreds of thousands of dollars by someone claiming to be a sheriff’s deputy collecting fines.
Detectives with the Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigative Unit enacted a sting operation on Graham Road outside of Saint Clairsville Ohio.
They say the suspect, Si Qi Yu, is in the country illegally and not cooperating with authorities.
He’s charged with felony theft, impersonating an officer and identity theft and his bond is set at 36-thousand dollars.
Si Qi Yu of Brooklyn, New York was arrested and charged with Felony Theft, Impersonating a Peace Officer, and Identity Theft.
Officials say Si Qi Yu is suspected of being involved in multi-state scam involving scamming money from individuals acting as government officials.
“My guy’s doing this awesome job and backtracking it and a lot of forensic and computer work and arresting this person is unbelievable and they did a terrific job. But everybody needs to know out there, we don’t want another victim. So say no.”
Belmont County Sheriff Dave Lucas
During the investigation officials say, it was discovered that a Belmont County resident was scammed out of hundreds of thousands of dollars by Si Qi Yu pretending to be a Sheriff’s Deputy collecting fines.
Si Qi Yu is being held at the Belmont County Jail under a $36,000 bond.
The sheriff’s office is warning all residents to be on alert for this scam. Do not offer your personal information to anyone on the phone who claims you have been hacked online.
