Morning Roundup: Feds say 3 Panama residents scammed $1.5M from Pittsburgh, U.S. residents

Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Thursday, Aug. 31:

Feds say 3 Panama residents scammed $1.5M from Pittsburgh, U.S. residents

Three men were extradited from Panama and had initial appearances in Pittsburgh federal court Wednesday on police accusations that they took part in orchestrating a nationwide grandparent scam.

Federal authorities said they scammed $1.5 million out of victims in the Pittsburgh area and elsewhere in the country including Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, New Hampshire, New York and Tennessee. Court papers did not specifically say where in the Pittsburgh area scams took place.

Indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit wire fraud were Stefano Zanetti, 41, of Canada; Samuel David Ferrer Avila, 22, of Venezuela; and Cesar Javier Chourio Morante, 27, of Venezuela and Colombia. They were living in Panama.

A grandparent scam typically involves scammers contacting residents and falsely claiming that a family member, often a grandchild, is in legal trouble and needs money for bail. The residents then withdraw cash and provide it to a courier who meets them at their home.

Investigators said the suspects are accused of directing groups of couriers to locations to pick up cash and overseeing safe houses where the money was taken and eventually transferred overseas. There was $245,920 seized at a safe house in Pittsburgh in September 2021, according to court filings.

2 suspects sought in reported carjacking in Shadyside

Authorities are looking for two men involved in a reported carjacking Wednesday night in Shadyside.

University of Pittsburgh and city police are working on the case after the incident was reported around 10:40 p.m. on Elwood Street. Two men with guns demanded money and stole a red Honda CRV from a man there after holding a gun to his head, smashing his cell phone and searching his pockets, according to a university police crime alert and city police. He was not hurt.

The suspects appeared to be two men standing about 5 feet, 8 or 9 inches tall who were wearing black long-sleeved shirts, denim jeans and black face masks. Anyone with information is asked to call university police at 412-624-2121 or city police at 412-422-6520.

Police seek missing 11-year-old

Pittsburgh police are looking for an 11-year-old boy who they said was last seen in the city’s Marshall-Shadeland neighborhood at 5 p.m. Wednesday. Xavier Hall is 4 feet, 9 inches tall and weighs 80 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes and was last seen wearing a black shirt, white shorts and black shoes with white soles.

Anyone with information is asked to call 911.

Police are searching for a missing 11-year-old.

Xavier Hall was last seen in Marshall Shadeland around 5 p.m. on August 30.

He's 4'9", 80lbs, with black hair, brown eyes and was last wearing a black shirt, white shorts and black shoes with white soles.

Info? Call 9-1-1. pic.twitter.com/7srEzUpviy

— Pittsburgh Police (@PghPolice) August 31, 2023

Theft at clothing store

Pittsburgh police are reviewing video surveillance footage after a break in and theft at the Brooks Brothers clothing store Downtown. The incident was reported at 3:30 a.m. Thursday on Smithfield Street.

The suspect fled the area after breaking a showcase window, police said. Items stolen were not detailed by authorities.

State trooper injured in Parkway West crash

A state trooper from Butler was hurt in a crash on the Parkway West, according to Tribune-Review news partner WTAE. The news outlet reported the trooper was off duty when he stopped to help at a crash scene just after midnight Aug. 24 and was hit by another vehicle near the Ridge Road exit.

He was taken to a hospital where he was undergoing at least two surgeries, WTAE reported.

Body removed from Indiana County reservoir

The body of a man who had recently traveled or relocated to Indiana County from Missouri was removed from a reservoir Tuesday.

State and local authorities responded to Two Lick Valley Reservoir in White Township around 11 a.m. after a body was reported in the water. State police said the death was not suspicious. Troopers are looking to talk to anyone who was at the reservoir during the late night or early morning hours on Monday or Tuesday.

Anyone with information can contact Trooper Mathias Schmotzer at 724-357-1960.