Scam artist learns lying doesn't always pay

For a couple of years, a man claiming to be in need of a few dollars to pay for an auto part so he could drive home to Illinois has successfully tested the generosity of Cape Girardeau residents.

Many of these generous folks, who would part with $20 or so rather than see a man stranded in our fair city, soon discovered that they had been victims of a scam. They usually found out when they saw the man drive away, often at a high rate of speed.

Scam victims, particularly those who are out only $20, are reluctant to admit they've been taken. To avoid embarrassment, many of these would-be Good Samaritans called Speak Out to warn others not to fall for the man's sad story.

But recently the Cape Girardeau Police Department was able to arrest a man asking for money for an auto part who said he didn't know that lying in order to get other people's money was a crime.

It is. The man -- who really is from Illinois -- was sentenced to some jail time and supervised probation and was ordered to make restitution.

By the way, the man tried the same scam in Cairo, Ill. -- and didn't collect a dime.