Indy woman arrested in adoption scheme
Updated: Friday, 19 Feb 2010, 11:01 PM EST
Published : Friday, 19 Feb 2010, 5:45 PM EST
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Metro Police say an Indianapolis woman admits scamming several couples from around the state in an adoption scheme.
Officers arrested 28-year-old Amber Hope Jackson Friday for allegedly scamming prospective adoptive parents and adoption agencies out of $6,000.
Police say Jackson would pretend to be pregnant with twins and offer up her children for adoption. Police say she was never pregnant.
Kay and Clayton Younggreen, of LaPorte County, were eager parents-to-be. They say Jackson contacted them after seeing their name on an adoption Web site.
"We were on cloud nine. It just looked like all the stars were lining up. And to have it, it look like it was too good to be true and then it was too good to be true," said Clayton.
The Younggreen's say their attorney questioned Jackson's documents.
"So then she called me and said she thought there might be some adoption fraud going on," Clayton said.
Younggreen estimates they gave Jackson as much as $3,000. But, he says the money's not important if it stops such fraud in the future.
"To kinda get the word out to where, if anybody else is thinking about doing this, it may deter them from crushing someone else’s dream," he said.
According to police, Jackson also scammed couples from Columbus and the state of Utah.
Jackson also
scammed adoption services, falsifying medical records and other documents using different birthdays and social security numbers, police say.
It was an adoption agency that eventually reported Jackson to police.
Jackson is facing seven felonies and three misdemeanors regarding the crimes. IMPD says she's also suspected of welfare fraud.
Police say these cases are usually rare but they've seen several examples lately.
Bookmarks