State Attorney General Josh Shapiro says a father and son from Fort Lauderdale, Florida are in custody for multiple burglaries in western Pennsylvania, targeting mostly elderly people. Their victims included an 85-year-old woman from Blairsville.
53-year-old Steve Nichols and 34-year-old Archie Marino are charged with multiple counts of operating corrupt organizations, conspiracy, burglary, and theft. They were indicted by a grand jury in June but U.S. Marshals were only able to catch up to them this week, acting on tips to locate them in Florida. Marino is in the Butler County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bond. Nichols is awaiting extradition to Pennsylvania.
Shapiro says the pair would go to the homes of their victims and one of them would distract the homeowner while the other entered the home and stole cash, jewelry, and other items of value. One of their methods was for one of them to pose as a utility worker and ask to be taken to the basement while the other pillaged the home. The woman in Blairsville lost $1,600 in the scam in November 2018.
Nichols and Marino were identified after police traced surveillance images and airline and car rental receipts. Further investigation helped narrow down their identities and Marino’s former in-laws, who live in the Pittsburgh area, were able to identify him.
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