Q102 Philly Phone Scammer Sentenced

A SOUTH PHILADELPHIA man convicted of hijacking calls to CLEAR CHANNEL Top 40 WIOQ (Q102)/PHILADELPHIA and indecently assaulting a teenage listener has been sentenced to three to six years in prison, according to the PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER. WILLIAM PASSARELLA, JR. who was convicted in JUNE, must also serve a subsequent seven years of probation.

PASSARELLA's victim testified that she was trying to call Q102, but apparently reached PASSARELLA because he had hijacked the station's request lines, diverting request calls to his home. PASSARELLA told her she had won a pair of front-row BRITNEY SPEARS concert tickets and $1,000. He said someone from the station would come to get her so she could claim the prize. PASSARELLA arrived in a silver car with large Q102 signs on both sides of the vehicle and in the rear windows, according to the victim, but instead of going to the station, he drove her to his home and locked her inside with him while he took dozens of calls from listeners and indecently touched her leg, she said. 

The victim also claimed that PASSARELLA offered a friend of hers $100 for sex. He also pled guilty to using a stolen credit-card number to rent limousines, and harassing and stalking other women.

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