(Graniteville) Jan. 13, 2005 - Aiken County Sheriff
Michael Hunt has a message for folks allegedly trying to
take advantage of what he calls a "disaster" in
Graniteville, "I want to warn those people: We're gonna
prosecute you if we catch you."
Despite the loss of nine lives in connection with a
train wreck and gas leak last week in Aiken County,
authorities there say some people are apparently trying
to use the tragedy for their gain.
The newest scam to surface is the sale of so-called
water sampling or decontamination kits. Officials say
residents shouldn't buy the kits. Aiken County officials
say they will make sure the homes are safe and say
residents absolutely do not need these things.
Sheriff Hunt says, "Let me stress that again, if
citizens are asked to pay for a service, that's a scam.
Don't pay for it. Don't buy water purification systems.
Decontamination kits, somebody's trying to sell those.
You're wasting your money."
He also reiterated the warning for phony phone
solicitations, "If somebody calls soliciting money over
the phone for any agency involving this disaster, it's a
scam. They're not doing phone solicitations."
Among those phone solicitation scams, investigators
say, is someone from Charlotte asking people in towns
around Graniteville for money for the non-existent
Warrenville Police Department. Authorities ay another
caller is soliciting money for area fire departments,
but officials say no fire department in the area is
soliciting money.
The State Law Enforcement Division and the Aiken
County Sheriff's Office are looking into reports of more
than 60 people who recently visited South Carolina
Department of Motor Vehicles offices in North Augusta
and Aiken and changed information on their driver's
licenses or IDs to show Graniteville addresses.
Officials say they think the people changed their
addresses to collect reimbursement money from Norfolk
Southern, the company that owned the trains that crashed
last week. SLED Chief Robert Stewart said, "We will not
tolerate anyone filing fake insurance claims or
attempting to do so."
Officials say they have already charged one person
for trying the scam. A 38-year old woman is in custody.
Her name has not been released.
Norfolk Southern Railway continues to operate an
accident assistance center at First Presbyterian Church
on Barnwell Avenue in Aiken to serve residents who have
incurred loss, inconvenience, personal injury or
property damage as a result of the incident. So far the
sheriff's department reports about 2000 people have
received assistance.
WIS has learned the first class action lawsuit has
been filed against Norfolk Southern. There are two
plaintiffs so far. Rodney Johnson filed a personal
injury claim Tuesday.
As we first told you last week, he's a 27-year-old
machine worker at Avondale who drove himself and about a
dozen of his coworkers to the hospital after they got
caught in the chlorine cloud. Another man, Joshua Pool,
has filed a property damage claim.
updated 9:58am by Chris
Rees
