hmm, i like the way this guy thinks on his feet.
...
One night, I was on my way home from work and needed to stop at a gas station. This gas station was right off a very busy, tolled interstate highway and had an attached convenience store, as most do.
It was dark out when I pulled up, I started pumping my gas and was headed to the store when another customer stopped me. His truck was at the pump across from me. He went on a sob story about how he just got a ticket for not having money to pay the tolls, being completely out of gas and needing to get home since he accidentally took all of his infant son's formula with him when he left. There was a woman with him, looking through a diaper bag while he related his tale of woe, and right when he mentions the formula, she yells "Yeah, all the formula is in here. What were we thinking?!? We really need to get back!" She said her wallet should be in the bag somewhere, but after dumping the contents inside the truck cabin, she lamented that it wasn't there. So yeah, obviously, they were looking for me to give them money.
For some stupid reason, I decide to give them the benefit of the doubt. I go into the store, take out $20 from the ATM and give it to them. In retrospect, this was such a textbook example of the stranded driver scam, but I guess I was really naive.
But then instead of just thanking me for the money, this brazen son of a bitch responds, "Thanks, but we really need another $20 to make it home. Any way you could get more?" He also promised he'd mail the money back to me if I gave him my name, address and phone number. At that point, I begin to regret giving him anything as all the red flags are registering in my mind at once.
Both of these people were very unhygienic -- greasy hair, VERY poor teeth (consistent with meth use), dirty clothes. The man's pupils were dilated a lot more than would be expected under the bright lights of the gas station and he was especially twitchy. Likewise, the woman was pacing around, muttering to herself in feigned concern. So yeah, they were both probably high. Also, looking at the contents of the diaper bag sprawled across their truck's interior, there was plenty of trash but no baby formula.
I thought to myself, if I'm going to ruin these people's night, I needed to be sure, so I agree to get more money but first ask him:
"Can I see the citation you got? My cousin is a state trooper and could probably take care of it for you. I just need some of the information on it."
As I jot down his licence plate number on my phone, he checks his pockets before saying, "Oh, hmmm. I have no idea what I did with it. It's ok; I'll just pay it. No big deal."
So, you don't have money for gas, but paying more than $100 on a traffic ticket is no big deal. Bull. Shit. I now also noticed the state of his license plate didn't match up with his story.
Pissed at myself, I'm making my way back into the store and the wheels in my head are spinning: How can I get back at this asshole? Have them kicked out? Nah, then they'll just go to another gas station and victimize someone else. Call the police? Eh, they might not get here in time. I'm a few feet from the door when genius strikes. I turn and call over to him:
"If you want, you can take my EZ pass for the tolls. I don't really need it anymore. It's right on the dashboard; the door should be unlocked."
"Oh, that'd be great! Thanks!"
I go into the store and pretend to use the ATM while I'm actually using an app on my phone to cancel my EZ pass. I report their fraudulent activity to the attendant and hurry back outside. I told the man I couldn't take any more money out of my account, sorry. He's disappointed, but didn't press me. I'm grinning like a smug idiot on the inside, get into my car, notice the transponder is gone and drive off.
I pull over a few minutes down the road and call the EZ pass office. By some stroke of luck, they're open late that day and I'm able to speak with an actual person. I explain to her that when I got into my car just now, I noticed the transponder was gone. I already cancelled it, but wanted to make sure it was all set. She confirms that it's deactivated and I can come pick up a replacement for a small fee. Eh, not today. She asks and I tell her where and by whom I suspect the transponder was taken, giving her their license plate number and address of the gas station. She promises to pass the information along to the state police. Perfect!
A day or so later, the state police call me to say they've recovered my transponder and needed me to come in to give a statement. Of course, I obliged. While there, I tried to pry more information on the fate of the con artists but they weren't very forthcoming at all. Luckily, I told my cousin the story and she said she'd look into the case for me.
According to the report, they got CCTV footage from the gas station showing me giving the man money and then him taking my transponder when I went back into the store. Afterwards, the meth heads got back onto the interstate and stopped at the nearest rest stop, where they presumably tried their scheme again, before moving on to the next one to repeat the process. Eventually, they got off the toll road and onto a different highway. When they drove through the EZ pass toll lane, they got flagged for not paying and were pulled over a few miles away. At this point, I was satisfied having caused them to get a >$100 citation, but that wasn't the end of it.
The cop notices something's up with the driver and calls for backup. When they arrive, the police officer gave the guy a field sobriety test which he failed and was arrested. While this is going on, the woman flipped out and started running. She doesn't make it far before they catch up to her whereupon she resists arrest.
All in all, the guy was charged with DUI (not his first time, either), possession (they had some meth in the truck), theft by deception (for the $20 I gave them) and theft (for the transponder). The truck was impounded and the guy got a large fine for operating without insurance along with the ~$100 fine for not paying the toll. The woman was charged with possession and resisting arrest (she also had a record). All in all, pretty sweet revenge.
They ended up only being tried for the drug-related charges, but I'm still very satisfied with that along with the fines. It gave my cousin (the cop) a good laugh, too.