Sgt. Brandon McCroskey told the Journal-News that the department charged Erik Damien Geier Jr. of Lutz, Florida, with theft by deception of a protected class, a third-degree felony.
Geier, 28, was identified as a suspect from information received from a family member of the victim, McCroskey said. He is believed to be the man who showed up in a U-Haul to collect $9,500 from the woman, who was told a loved one needed it for bond in Franklin County, Ohio.
On Tuesday, Fairfield Twp. police said they were looking for a U-Haul box truck rental with a white GMC chassis, which was driven by a man in his late 20s or early 30s last seen wearing blue jeans, a dark green hooded coat with a fur trim around the hood and tan or brown work boots.
In multiple cases, the victims received phone calls claiming to be from loved ones who said they were incarcerated and needed bail money. The caller told the victims that someone would stop by their home to get the cash. Later, the suspect in the U-Haul arrived and took the victims’ money.
“I am sure it is part of a bigger network,” said McCroskey who noted the descriptions of the suspect and the van match an incident in Hanover Twp. “He may have bolted back (to Florida) especially after seeing all the media coverage. But I wanted to put it out there, so others didn’t give him more cash.”
One couple in Hanover Twp. gave the suspect $20,000 and the Fairfield Twp. woman gave him $9,500, according to police.
McCroskey said there may be additional victims in the area.
Anyone with information about the crime or the suspect’s vehicle is urged to call Fairfield Twp. detectives at 513-785-1463 or Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040.
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