CAPTURED: Suspect accused in dent repair scam involving multiple elderly victims
RENTON, Wash. - CAPTURED: Oct. 1, 2021. Georgio Stevens was arrested today and booked into the King County jail. He is being held without bail on multiple charges of Identity Theft.
ORIGINAL:
Georgio Christopher Stevens, 27, is wanted on multiple warrants for his arrest after King County prosecutors him with 13 felony counts including multiple cases in Renton of Identity Theft in the First Degree and Theft From a Vulnerable Adult in the Second Degree.
He also has warrants for his arrest for Theft of a Motor Vehicle in Tukwila, Unlawful Possession of a Firearm 2nd Degree, Theft 3rd Degree, Resisting Arrest and Obstruction of a Law Enforcement Officer.
Prosecutors say on multiple occasions, Stevens scammed elderly men and women after damaging their vehicles. He would damage the bumper of a car and offer to repair it for a small fee. Then after collecting the owner's debit card information, Stevens would go to an ATM or store and steal their money.
"He was so nice. He was one of the sweetest, nicest people you could ever ask for," said 91-year-old Frances Lee.
In January, Lee was the victim of one of these crimes.
She says she was walking back to her car from the bank when she was approached by the suspect who claimed her bumper was broken, and he could fix it.
"It’s very hard to say, ‘no’ to somebody that looks like they are really trying to do you a good turn," she said.
Lee gave the suspect her debit card information. She then claims the suspect said he needed to get material to fix her car.
"I thought, he is never coming back," she said.
Lee lost $2,000 dollars in the scam, she says.
Many of these cases are from January to March of 2021, but prosecutors say it is likely there are more victims who have not filed reports. There are at least 13 victims from Bellevue, Renton and Tukwila.
"Even if there are people who were victimized earlier than that and haven’t come forward, we’re able to charge those crimes within the statute of limitations so even if it happened last year and we don’t know about it, folks can still come forward have it resolved," said Casey McNerthney of the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.
Georgio Stevens was in jail but a judge released temporarily to receive treatment. Officials with the prosecutor’s office said they did not want him released out of fear he would not return to jail.
Stevens was ordered to return to jail by 4 p.m. on June 23. He did not show up so bench warrants were issued for his arrest.
If you spot Stevens, call 911. If you have information that will help Renton Police find him, submit an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or by using the P3 tips app on your mobile device to text the information. You can also submit tips at www.P3tips.com. You will be paid a cash reward of up to $1,000 for information that leads to his arrest.
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