The bunco artist who swept through town last week has been identified as itinerant singer- songwriter Jonathan Richman.

Richman somehow convinced a crowd of people (mostly haggard looking elderly men) to congregate at a local firehouse and give him $15 each.
Next, Richman lulled the marks into a sopoforic state with his "performance," and absconded with the loot - much as one would sing a lullaby to quiet a fretful infant, then tiptoe from the room.
Authorities are perplexed that Richman has managed to stay at large, running the same con, year after year, decade after decade.
"He preys on a vulnerable and weak-minded cohort," said police chief Alfred B. "Trusting old geezers without a lick of sense."
Authorities are taking the crime very seriously. "$15 may not seem like a lot, but from the looks of this bunch, we're talking life savings or close to it," B continued.
There are reports that Randy Now, a local character, may have been the inside man who helped Richman set up the sting.
Reached for comment, Now, who makes his living selling pieces of plastic to naifs who haven't heard of the digital revolution, noted that he is having a big sale next week.
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