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Investigation Continues Regarding Phone Scam That Got Uber Driver Killed

This is a sad case.

Last month Ohio man William Brock was the targeted victim in a phone scam.

The mystery scammer on the other end of the line sent an unaware Uber driver, Loletha Hall, to his house to pick up an item.

This item was money in some form.

Brock thought the driver was in on it and was trying to rob him. He drew out his pistol and shot her.

Now Uber is helping to investigate who had the Uber account and sent Hall to her death.

Associated Press reports:

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Uber is helping investigators look into an account that sent a driver to the Ohio home where an 81-year-old man allegedly shot the woman to death because he erroneously believed she was part of a scam that targeted him, the ride-hailing company said Wednesday.

The March 25 shooting death of Loletha Hall is “a horrific tragedy,” and that account has since been banned, an Uber spokesperson wrote in an emailed statement. “Our hearts continue to be with Loletha’s loved ones as they grieve.”

William J. Brock was indicted Monday on charges of murder, felonious assault and kidnapping for Hall’s death. Messages seeking comment were left Wednesday for him and for his lawyer, Paul Kavanagh of Springfield, Ohio.

The grand jury also said that a gun seized from Brock’s home, a .22-caliber revolver, is subject to forfeiture. Brock has pleaded not guilty.

Police said Brock called 911 before noon to say he had shot someone at his South Charleston home, claiming Hall had tried to rob him. Investigators later said the driver was unaware of the scam call that Brock had received with threats and demands for money, citing an incarcerated relative.

Hall “made no threats or assaults toward Mr. Brock, and made no demands, other than to ask about the package she was sent to retrieve through the Uber app,” the Clark County Sheriff’s Office wrote in an April 11 release. The police agency said Brock “produced a gun and held her at gunpoint, making demands for identities of the subjects he had spoken with on the phone.”

It’s not clear exactly what the phone callers said to Brock, but the sheriff’s office news release included a reminder, particularly to older people, that law enforcement and courts do not solicit cash for bail money “in the manner of this case.”

“We encourage all citizens to use extreme caution when being contacted unexpectedly by subjects claiming to be relatives incarcerated in a correctional facility, or claiming to have direct knowledge of relatives incarcerated in a correctional facility,” the sheriff’s office warned.

The FBI in January issued an alert regarding government impersonation scams that send couriers to the homes of their targets — often older people — to collect money, or have them purchase gold and other precious metals. The FBI said its Internet Crime Complaint Center recorded that such activity had resulted in losses of more than $55 million in the last eight months of 2023.

A 2021 survey of older adults in the Chicago area found that when people were told by a fictitious government agency their personal information was compromised, those with low awareness of scams were particularly vulnerable.

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Police have said the Hall’s Uber trip to pick up a package was ordered by the same person who made scam calls to Brock, or by an accomplice.

This really speaks about the breaking point so many people are at in this country.

With so many thieves, crimes, scammers, grifts, illegal aliens and murders, people are on high alert and trust is at an all-time low.

That coupled with money woes due to the Federal Reserve, which is having people take this risky jobs and it’s a recipe for a disaster.

More and more are less willing to give the benefit of the doubt due to the crime nation we’ve found ourselves in.

Do I use Uber or Lyft or have food delivered to me via an app?

No way. I would never use any of those services.

Have you read the news lately?

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By the way, guess who Uber and Lyft and now hiring?

Illegal immigrants (with their free smart phones) are using those apps to drive for them.

So now you can have them come right to your door and delivery your goods?

No thanks.

What the heck is going on out there?

All I know is that I never heard about the pizza dudes getting killed or doing the killing while making a delivery.

But now with Uber and Lyft and Doordash and whatever else, the murder reports keep rolling in.

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Be vigilant out there.


 

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