A scam artist who was recently released from jail is behind bars once again on the same charges. Billie Jo Gwinn, 41, of Rainelle, is currently being held at the Southern Regional Jail on two separate bonds, totaling $7,500.
According to two different Greenbrier County Criminal Complaints, Gwinn used similar sob-story lines to get people to give or loan her money. On June 10 she got $200 from one victim and on July 8 she got $260 from another victim.
The stories Gwinn tells are attempts to gain sympathy and usually tell a tale of woe designed to elicit cash. She usually states she needs money to get her daughter and grandson from North Carolina (or Tennessee) because their car has broken down, or that she needs money for a sick child in ICU. The urgency of her request usually provokes a surge of compassion from people she accosts upon hearing her hardluck story.
Rainelle Police Chief J.P. Stevens said Gwinn has been scamming individuals for the last two years, and asks that anyone who has given/loaned money to Gwinn as part of her scam contact the Rainelle Police Department at 304-438-7772.