Fayette County, GA – Investigators from the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office have arrested several individuals connected to widespread phone scams that defrauded metro Atlanta victims of thousands of dollars. The arrested individuals include Braindon Cayo, Dequarius Thornton, and Andrew Maresh.
Many of the arrested were already serving time in prison, with Maresh currently serving a life sentence for murder in Alabama. The arrested suspects were involved in scams such as the jury duty scam, bonding company scam, and parole board scam, all of which tricked victims into sending money under false pretenses.
Fayette County Sheriff Barry Babb explained that even those behind bars were involved in orchestrating these frauds, calling it “disturbing” that individuals were able to exploit innocent people while incarcerated. Cayo and Thornton are currently serving sentences in Georgia, while Maresh is in an Alabama facility.
The scams primarily targeted victims in Fayette County and beyond. In one scam, perpetrators impersonated law enforcement officers, claiming victims had missed jury duty and needed to pay a fine. Another scam involved falsely claiming that a victim’s loved one had been jailed and demanding money to secure their release. A third scam falsely promised parole board hearings for an inmate, requesting money for early release.
Fayette County investigators have traced these phone fraud rings to over $130,000 stolen from victims in multiple states. The scammers often used real police officers’ names to make the calls seem legitimate, and phone apps to disguise the origin of the calls.
Sheriff Babb urged the public to be vigilant, warning that law enforcement will never ask for money over the phone. Authorities are continuing their investigation, and additional arrests may follow.
