Stings So Good! But How Will We Con Criminals Next Time?

Flickr: quickcuffed

"Welcome to Al's! Let me show you to your cell. Can I tell you about our special on bologna sandwiches?"

​Operation Show Me the Money was a big hit for the Fort Lauderdale Police, who invited people with outstanding warrants to collect stimulus checks only to be arrested. In this fashion, they corralled 76 bad guys. Not bad, but cops can't rely on stimulus checks every year, so we'll need fresh bait to catch criminals in years to come. With that in mind, a few ideas:

Congratulations! You have been selected in a random lottery of Broward County residents to dine and drink free at the grand opening of  Al's Steakhouse and Pizzeria in downtown Fort Lauderdale. Just bring this note and proof of identification and you'll be entitled to all the free steak, buffalo wings and cocktails you can handle.

By the time they realize that Al's last name is Lamberti and that his wait staff are all deputies, it's too late.

After the jump, an idea for the Palm Beach Sheriff's Office -- particularly for its efforts to apprehend the highly evasive con artists who populate Boca Raton.

On behalf of the AARP's Platinum Club, we would like to invite you to give a 15-minute presentation to our members about the exciting investment opportunities your company has advertised on Google searches, faxes and mass e-mails. Platinum Club members are elderly people who qualify based on their wealth. This fall conference was organized as a response to members who told us they wanted to find lucrative investments but knew very little about how to "play the market." If you're interested, please identification as well as any financial documentation, like account numbers, as we are equipped to make wire transfers on site.

Is there a stadium in Palm Beach County big enough to hold the fraudsters who'd respond to that invitation?