Erhan Kraina has become subject of several similar stories on social media
KCJJ Staff
02/22/19
A Coralville man with a lengthy prior criminal history has been arrested again after allegedly taking a woman for $150 ostensibly to get his car out of impound.
Police say the victim in the latest incident involving Erhan Kraina, 36, of 19th Avenue, asked them to come with her when she met with Kraina on Wednesday. That was after she allegedly gave him $150 and he refused to pay her back.
According to Iowa City Police, Kraina had asked the woman for the money because his car had been towed. He allegedly promised to pay her back later in the day on Wednesday. But when he contacted her again, he allegedly asked for another $200 from the woman, stating he would pay her back through Venmo. The woman refused that request.
They then arranged a meeting at CVS Pharmacy on Muscatine Avenue about 4 p.m., but the woman brought an officer with her. When Kraina did not pay the woman her money, officers took him into custody on a 5th Degree Theft charge.
If convicted on that charge, he could be sentenced to up to 30 days in jail.
Kraina has been arrested multiple times for similar scams around the area, and faces more serious charges after he allegedly asked a man for a ride in Iowa City on July 21, 2018, then forced that man to drive him around the Iowa City and Cedar Rapids areas to deliver drugs.
In that incident, police say Kraina displayed a handgun to the man but eventually paid him $200 for driving him around.
Kraina faces charges of 1st Degree Robbery and False Imprisonment in that incident and could be sentenced to up to 26 years in prison if convicted on both charges. He’s pleaded not guilty. Trial is currently set to begin March 12.
Kraina has also been the subject of multiple posts on social media warning about him asking for rides in Iowa City and Coralville, either offering to pay for them or asking for cash, with many saying he uses the same story of needing to get his car out of impound.