Man scammed while trying to help disabled Oklahoma veteran
OKLAHOMA CITY – A man who was simply trying to help a disabled veteran who was recently attacked and robbed got scammed in the process.
“When I have to get on bus 38, it makes me real nervous,” Johnny Neely told News 4 earlier this month.
Johnny Neely, a disabled veteran, spoke to News 4 about a man who according to a police report screamed, “Veterans think they’re better than everyone else,” at Neely as he was exiting an Embark bus.
“He was screaming that and then he swatted at my head and when he did, I said, ‘I’ll dial 911,’” Neely said.
After that, the suspect allegedly stole Neely’s cell phone.
Billy Williams, a friend of Neely’s, saw News 4’s story and came up with an idea.
"I said, 'Do you have any money saved up for a vehicle?' Because I noticed he didn't have one anymore. He used to have a van. And he said, 'I do.' And I said, 'well if you'd like, I can take that money and go get you a truck.' I showed him two different trucks,” Williams told News 4.
Neely settled for one on Facebook Marketplace. So, Williams contacted the seller who agreed to sell the truck for $300.
The two met in Shawnee where Williams gave him the cash, but the truck wasn’t there.
"He said that his mother and father-in-law had the title and keys waiting for me at the house. Gave me the address. I pulled up to the house. There was no truck there,” Williams said.
Turns out, it was a phony address. Williams tried to contact the seller again on Facebook and texted him but didn’t get a response.
Williams filed a police report with the Shawnee Police Department.
So far, no arrests have been made in either case.
Williams also started a fundraiser on Facebook to raise money to get Neely another car.