Jeweler loses $10,000 in phony gold scam

A man duped the owner of a Wauwatosa jewelry store was duped into paying $10,000 for what turned out to be fake gold chains and coins.

According to Wauwatosa police:

A customer brought two 14-karat and two 24-karat gold chains and two gold coins in to sell at Gold Emporium, 7024 W. North Ave., at 11:15 a.m. Feb. 23. The owner thought it was unusual for someone to sell 24-karat gold because of its high value, so he weighed the items and examined them for authenticity. Satisfied that they were real, he negotiated a price of $10,000, if the seller was willing to get fingerprinted.

The seller became angry and took back the bag of items, saying he would take his business to downtown Milwaukee. Then he started telling his life story, claiming that he was a military veteran who needed to sell items so he would have money to put toward buying a house. Eventually, he agreed to the fingerprinting, but the store owner backed off the request.

The seller handed back the bag for the money. After he left, the owner realized he had been given an identical bag, but this one was filled with look-alike costume jewelry.