An 81-year-old man was charged with murder after shooting and killing an Uber driver he believed was working for a scammer who had tried to elicit a significant amount of money from him, not realising that she had fallen victim to the same scammer.
William Brock, of Clark County, Ohio, just northeast of Dayton, reportedly got a call from a man claiming to be a court official. The scammer informed him that a family member had been arrested and that bond was posted for a significant amount, according to Lieutenant Kristopher Shultz of the Clark County Sheriff's Office, who spoke to NBC News.
"Mr Brock received some scam call by a person purporting to be someone from our courts who informed him a family member was incarcerated and that he had a bond of a significant amount of money," the lieutenant said. "The calls turned from 'I'm an officer in the court' to 'We have this subject hostage. This is a ransom demand.'"
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Mr Brock threatened Ms Hall with a gun when she showed up to his residence (Clark County Sheriff's Office)On that fateful March 25, Loletha Hall, a 61-year-old Uber driver, received an order for a ride to Mr Brock's home. But when she arrived, Mr Brock thought she was working with the man who had called him from the court. It turned out that the ride was ordered by that man, who had reportedly told Mr Brock that an Uber was on its way to pick up the money.
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So, when Ms Hall arrived, Mr Brock was ready — he greeted her with a gun at the door of his South Charleston home. But Ms Hall had no idea what was going on and tried to explain that to an irate Mr Brock, Lieutenant Shultz said.
Mr Brock reportedly asked Ms Hall who she was working for, confiscated her cellphone and kept her from getting into her vehicle and driving away. After a bit, the incident escalated, and Mr Brock shot Ms Hall.
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Mr Brock reportedly demanded to know who Ms Hall was working with and got angry when she couldn't answer him, as she had no clue what was going on (Clark County Sheriff's Office)Lieutenant Shultz said: "When she tried to get away, he shot her once, then there was more exchange between them. Mr Brock was at some point injured to his head, and he shot Ms Hall a second time. There was more conversation, and then he shot her a third time. Only after he shot her a third time did he make contact with authorities to report the incident."
Ms Hall died from her injuries. It was later revealed that she had no weapons and hadn't tried to assault him at all — she hadn't even attempted to threaten Mr Brock. She died at the hospital from her injuries, a complaint in the Clark County Municipal Court revealed.
Uber reportedly banned the person who ordered the ride to Mr Brock's house, but no further information on that person was immediately available from the company or the authorities. It's not clear whether an arrest has been made in connection with the scam.
A grand jury indicted Mr Brock on three counts of murder, a count of felonious assault and a count of kidnapping on Monday, it was reported. He's set to be arraigned on said charges later in the week, and it remains unclear whether he has an attorney.
His initial arraignment occurred last Wednesday, when he was charged with murder. He posted a $200,000 bond. If he's found guilty of the charges, he faces up to life in prison, with a minimum of 15 years, and a $15,000 fine.
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