Chase customer had $40K wiped from account ‘correcting the mistake someone else made’ – money disappears if you click ATM button

AN ELDERLY WOMAN met with thousands of people after being scammed thanks to a good doer.

In White Settlement, Texas, an anonymous 84-year-old woman was defrauded of several thousand dollars after falling for a cryptocurrency scam.

4

4

4

A good Samaritan ended up helping save the woman money, but only after the scammers put the fear of God into the elderly victim, the police department explained. Facebook post.

According to the victim, she received a call imitating a Chase Bank phone number, through which a scammer, claiming to be a representative, demanded that she withdraw the money.

The fake representative told her that she should withdraw $40,000 from her own savings and deposit it into a Bitcoin ATM.

Either she completed the funds transfer or she would be arrested, the fraudster said.

Still on the phone, the woman went to a local Chevron gas station, which has a Bitcoin ATM, and began inserting money, complying with the scammers’ demands.

While the elderly woman was depositing thousands of dollars in cash, a customer at the store noticed and called for help.

The White Settlement Police Department responded to the call after the concerned customer called 911.

“I was here taking money out of the ATM and I noticed an elderly lady putting thousands of dollars into the cryptocurrency machine,” the customer told dispatchers in the 911 recording.

According to the customer, the woman had already deposited around R$23,000 in the ATM.

The customer explained how the whole situation didn’t seem legitimate.

“They Facetiming her to make sure she is putting the money in the machine. I just don’t think she’s aware of what she’s doing,” the good Samaritan explained.

“It looks so suspicious.”

Before calling the authorities, the customer tried to intervene in the elderly woman’s deposit, but was rebuffed.

The victim told the other customer that he was “correcting a mistake made by someone else.”

THE POLICE ENTRY AND APPROACH

When the police arrived at the scene, the elderly woman was still putting money into the machine.

Sergeant James Stewart took the victim’s phone upon arrival and identified himself to the scammer, who in turn claimed to be at Chase Bank.

The caller was instructed by Stewart to call 911 if he was indeed from the bank.

Upon hearing this instruction, the fraudster became defensive and demanded to speak to the elderly woman once again.

All I could do was visualize my mother in this case.”

Sergeant James Stewart

Despite the scammer’s insistence, Stewart said they were unable to speak to the woman.

“If you want to talk to her, call my office first,” Stewart said.

The scammer continued to press, telling the officer to give the phone back to the “client,” becoming more agitated as the encounter continued.

“You have nothing to do with this,” the fake bank representative told Stewart.

“Yes I do. This is fraud and theft,” he replied.

‘DO YOU REALLY WANT TO FIGHT THIS FIGHT?’

After this comment, the fraudster turned his attention to the victim, instructing him to take the phone back from the police.

When that didn’t work, the scammer began persuading the woman to press the “Done” button, which would finalize the $23,900 deposit.

Stewart, calm and collected up to that point, began to raise his voice.

“She’s not clicking anything,” he yelled.

Bank tips to avoid scams

As scams become more sophisticated with the use of artificial intelligence, it is important that you know how to identify them:

• Be skeptical of online businesses that seem too good to be true, especially on social media.
• Scammers often use tactics to make you panic so that you make quick decisions – be cautious if you are asked to take immediate action and check who has contacted you.
• Chase Bank warns customers to “never return any unexpected funds without calling Chase first.”
• Never send money to someone you’ve only spoken to online or on the phone, as this is likely a romantic scam.
• Unless you know 100% who you are talking to, never give someone remote access to your device.
• Never accept help from strangers at ATMs and always be careful when making withdrawals.
• Do not send money or click on links that indicate you have won a prize.

Source: Chase.com

“Do you really want to fight this fight with me?”

The scammer went back to the sergeant, trying to convince him that the situation was none of his business.

When their attempt at victory failed, they once again turned their attention to the elderly woman, even calling her by the wrong name.

“You still haven’t got her name right, you idiot,” Stewart yelled at the scammer.

ALL IS WELL THAT ENDS WELL

Despite the scammer’s efforts, the woman ended up withholding all of her funds.

The White Settlement Police Department, in conjunction with Bitcoin Law Enforcement and the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office, worked together to recover their funds.

Because the woman didn’t press the “Done” button, police were able to cut a check for $23,900 to return to her.

Stewart, feeling personally connected to the case, was even able to deliver the check to the fortunately unharmed victim.

With the perpetrators still out there, Stewart began thinking about her own mother, who could easily have fallen victim to such a scheme.

“All I could do was visualize my mother in this case,” he explained.

“I wish we could find this guy and put him behind bars for a long time because he’s probably doing this to other people,” said Sgt.

Phone scam statistics

Americans are bombarded with three billion spam calls per month. What are the numbers regarding the number of victims and the amount of money lost to fraudsters

• In 2022, Americans lost an estimated $39.5 billion to phone fraud, with 68.4 million US citizens affected, according to TechReport.
• The average phone scam victim lost $567.41 each in 2021, a huge increase from the figure of $182 per victim in 2021, according to Hiya.
• Most scams happen over the phone, with fraudsters twice as likely to call compared to text in 2021, as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reports.
• In 2021, the US saw a 56% increase in spam phone calls, with 60% of those robocalls.
• US residents receive an average of 18 spam phone calls per month, although some experts believe the real number could be as high as 31 per month.
• Many phone calls from reputable companies can be mistakenly marked as spam, but 38% of companies have no idea whether they are being marked as “potential fraud” or not, according to Hiya.
• Never provide personal or financial information if you suspect a phone call is a scam. For example, your bank will never ask for these full details over the phone.
• To reduce spam calls and scams, sign up for the Do Not Call Registry. Telemarketers, by law, will need to check this list before calling you.
• Downloading third-party apps like Hiya, Nomorobo or Truecaller can help filter annoying spam calls.
• Try not to share your phone number unless necessary, especially online or with sketchy sources.