Bizarre fraud case prompts bomb squad call in New Castle

NEW CASTLE, Pa. (WKBN) – While some details can’t be released just yet into a fraud investigation in New Castle, the circumstances that prompted a call Wednesday to the Allegheny County Bomb Squad were laid out by police in a social media post.

Earlier Wednesday, detectives with New Castle police were investigating a fraud case involving the transfer of money from a victim to an unknown actor under the guise of receiving a greater amount of money for the victim. Investigators believed the scheme had been going on for several months, with money being sent to the actor several different times.

While detectives were at the victim’s residence, they were informed that a safe had been sent to the victim from the actor, and the victim was led to believe that there was a lot of money in the safe, but if anyone tampered with it without the correct combination, the safe would explode.

An explosive-detecting K-9 was called in and gave a positive indication of the safe. At that time, the Allegheny Bomb Squad was called to help.

The bomb squad technicians had police make sure that no one was in the residence or near any exterior walls, and students at the nearby Croton Administration Building/School on Fern Street were evacuated as an extra precaution, police said.

The bomb squad removed the safe and took it to an open field where they used explosives to open it. No explosives were found inside.

No further information about the incident was released.

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