WITH her walking cane and her oxygen cart, 75-year-old Betty Gooch easily won the confidence of car dealers when she went shopping for new cars, minivans, and sport utility vehicles (SUV).

 

The grandmother would hand over a check, and then ask the dealer to hold off cashing it, until she could get her broker to move funds into that account, or retrieve the money from a retirement account, according to authorities.

 

But in at least two recent cases those checks bounced, according to police who believe Gooch may have scammed a dozen car dealers in the suburban Chicago area in a similiar fashion over the past four years, the Chicago Tribune has reported.

 

The grandmother has been charged with five felony counts of theft by deception and passing bad cheques in those two cases, the Tribune said.

 

She is due in court March 31 in McHenry County, Illinois, on charges she bounced a check to pay for a $US22,000 Mazda SUV, and is set to appear in Cook County April 8 in connection with a $US56,000 shopping spree in November last year when she bought a Toyota Sienna minivan and a Toyota Matrix car.

 

Police apparently decided not to press charges in another alleged incident, because the Chrysler Group dealership managed to repossess its minivan, albeit with 3000 miles on the clock.

 

Tonny Kotlartz, an investigator for McHenry County state's attorney's office, told the Tribune he suspected that other dealerships had decided against legal action.

 

"A lot of these businesses are embarrassed. They get their vehicle back and take the loss and choose not to file a criminal complaint or sue her civilly."

 

 

Damn Grandma's ridin spinners.

Throw her ass in jail. If you're intelligent enough to pull of this scam you deserve to rot in prison (regardless of age.)

Grammy did it again? I told her to stop when she told me the story of doing it in 1952 when she was just a young lady.

 

I think I'm going to go cry now.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And obviously I am joking. Both of my grandmothers live in small towns in South Dakota.

Grammy did it again?  I told her to stop when she told me the story of doing it in 1952 when she was just a young lady. 

 

I think I'm going to go cry now. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And obviously I am joking.  Both of my grandmothers live in small towns in South Dakota.

My grandma wouldn't remember if she did a thing like this.

My grandma wouldn't remember if she did a thing like this. 

Wow, if she wouldn't remember something like that, I would wonder if she would even remember people's names.

 

So does she remember your name?

Wow, if she wouldn't remember something like that, I would wonder if she would even remember people's names.

 

So does she remember your name? 

She still thinks I go to Primary School.

This happened so many times in the area, that they started to call it getting "Gooched"