German police have arrested four people suspected of running a scam in which they flagged down motorists, pretending their car had broken down, and then tried to sell cheap jewelry at an inflated price.

According to a press release from the Westpfalz police, two men and two women between the ages of 17 and 22 had parked their car Tuesday on Ludwigshafener Strasse, the road leading from the Autobahn 6 Kaiserslautern east exit to the U.S. Army's Daenner and Kleber caserns.

They were spotted by a passing motorist who saw them trying to stop cars by signalling their vehicle had broken down. The motorist, who said the four had managed to stop one driver, called police.

When police arrived, they checked the car — a BMW with temporary registration plates from the Heidelberg area — and found some cheap golden rings and $85. When the police opened the car trunk, they found the regular car plates. They confiscated the jewelry and money and charged the four with fraud and forgery of documents.

Earlier in the week, police had issued a warning for motorists to be on the watch for this scam, which they said was frequently being pulled near U.S. military bases.

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