Illegal Alien Accused of Scamming Palm Beach Residents Out of $80K by Claiming to Have a Sick Child

An illegal alien defrauded pedestrians of at least $80,000 over the last year by playing a violin outside stores and claiming to be collecting money for his sick child, the Palm Beach County, Florida Sheriff’s Office alleges.

Giovani Radu, a 22-year-old illegal alien, was arrested last month after allegedly defrauding pedestrians of tens of thousands of dollars over the last year, pretending to be collecting cash to care for his sick child. Radu, police say, does not have a child.

According to the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office, Radu had been playing a violin outside multiple stores across the county over the last year, including a TJ Maxx, begging for money from pedestrians.

Radu allegedly funneled the donations through a fake nonprofit that purported to be helping his sick child  he claimed to be caring for. In reality, police say, Radu does not have any children and was able to rake in at least $80,000 from the scheme.

When police searched Radu, they discovered that the illegal alien had multiple license plates for his vehicle, a number of ID cards, and was carrying a makeshift knife on his person.

Radu has been charged with fraud, providing a false name to law enforcement, and carrying a concealed weapon, among other charges. Despite his illegal alien status, Radu was able to post bail and is asked to return to court this month.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.