07 July Scams

07.28 The victim stated that she has bought 26 gift cards each worth $499 and $500 and sending them to an unknown person who was claiming they were Microsoft and was calling from the phone number of 1-877-811-0722. She stated that she was on her computer when an unknown screen appeared and advised her that she has 91 computer viruses on her computer, it also said call the number listed above. When she called the number, a person by the name of Allan advised her that she needed to open new line of credit and buy gift cards for "personal use" and give them the code on the back. She stated that she had multiple different people call her, but "Allen" was the person she spoke to the most. She stated that she has sent roughly $13,000 in total to the unknown suspect.

07.24 Victim stated he sold his daughter’s vehicle last night on Facebook Marketplace. A male and female came to the home and picked up the car. They paid with a bank’s cashier’s check that turned out to be fraudulent. The victim went to Facebook to locate them again, but their account was shut down.

07.24 The victim stated he was searching online at vintagemusclecars.com and clicked on a link that sent him to the website, consignkpadcompany.com. This site had a 1959 Chevrolet Apache Pickup for sale for $9,000. The victim made all the preparations to buy this vehicle with the seller. A few days ago he went to his bank and wired the money to the seller. The company shows a Florida address. The victim tried contacting the seller but now there is no communication; he believes he fell for a fraud scheme. He contacted his bank and is trying to see if anything can be done on their end.

07.20 The victim explained that she received an email from Amazon stating she had a $1500 order that was being shipped to a different state. She called the number from the email. This led her to speaking to someone who identified as Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan. She was told that she was involved in money laundering and other illegal activities. To rectify the situation, she was told to withdraw $4000. She then went to Kohl's and bought twenty $200 Sephora gift cards. She then told the person she was talking to on the phone all the gift card numbers. She lost a total of $4000. She said she was speaking to two different numbers which were 202-860-0981 and 206-400-8312. I advised her to make a report with her bank.

07.20 The victim applied for a personal assistant job with World Vision Organization. She had received a letter with instructions along with a check. The check was in the amount of $2800. The instructions on the letter told her to deposit the check and notify them once this was completed. Once the victim notified them the check was deposited, she was instructed to send money through Zelle to a Bonita Stokes and a Miranda Morris. She sent a total of $2130. She was later notified by her bank that the $2800 check she deposited was fraudulent. The victim has since received more checks in the mail for her to do the same. The texting has since stopped since she discovered she was scammed.

07.18 The victim explained he was on the dating site Plenty of Fish. On July 6th he started messaging a woman who called herself Brittany Brown. He said that to be on this site you have to say you are 18 years or older. He said that Brittany often would text him sexually explicit texts and pictures. He texted her he was uncomfortable with these messages because he wanted to get to know her first. Brittany got the victim to switch from using the dating site to texting. She continued to text sexually explicit messages. Eventually someone who said they were Brittany's father (Gerald) told the victim that he found out that Brittany was messaging him and she is a minor. Gerald threatened to call the police. Gerald even allegedly had an FBI agent call the victim and tell him that he was at fault because he was texting a minor and had child pornography. The “father” said that if the victim gave him money, he would not pursue charges. Gerald said he needed the money to bring Brittany to sexual therapy. The victim sent $987.52. The victim said he was so worried about being charged with child pornography. After speaking to his father, he called 911.

07.14 The victim stated that she got an email from Norton LifeLock stating her computer has been compromised and she needed to email her social security number, bank account, along with usernames and password. She did but then realized it was a scam after she sent the information. She immediately called her bank and the social security office. She stated they were going to take $474, but as of now she is out no money.

07.13 The victim suffered a $25,000 loss over the course of two-and-a-half years. He stated that he had been giving a female money by way of gift cards. He has received multiple checks from her for pay back, but the checks are fraudulent. I reviewed the receipts and checks he had from the female he knew to be Rylee Galvan. He has never met Rylee in person they only communicate via text or email and that her phone number constantly changes every few weeks or months. He stated that he has been willfully sending Rylee money over the years with the understanding that she was going to pay him back. The first check he was sent was in the amount of $10,000 on 05/01/2023 was altered/fictitious. He received three more checks in the month of June in the amounts of $25,000, $4,000, and $25,000. He brought the checks to the bank and the bank would not cash them because they knew they were fraudulent. He stated that he would purchase the gift cards and give Rylee the code to them via text/email. He said she lived in Minneapolis. There is no such person in Minnesota.

07.12 The victim reported she had $710 dollars stolen through Western Union. She stated the day prior she was on her computer when a virus ad popped up on her computer and wouldn't go away. She stated that there was a number to call and she finally called it speaking with a Ron Matthew with Microsoft. She stated the male had a foreign accent and asked for permission to access her computer. Sandra stated she gave him permission, but when he brought up payment, she hung up with him and thought it was a scam. She stated the next day she found out that somehow $710 dollars was transferred out of her account through Western Union.

07.06 The victim stated on 07/01/2023 while on Facebook Market Place she received a message on her computer to notify her she was being hacked and to call a number to prevent further damage. She contacted an unknown person, and they wanted sensitive information from her. She then became suspicious and hung up the phone. She did not lose any money.

07.06 The victim said he posted a hay bailer for sale on FB Marketplace on 6/30/2023. A male purchased the item and sent him a check via USPS for $2000; the asking price was $1000. The buyer said the extra $1000 was to pay the person who was going to pick up the equipment for shipping. He told him to deposit the check. He did and the check cleared the bank. The buyer requested him to send the extra $1000 via Venmo or Apple pay to the shipping company. He said he did not do electronic of app payments and would have cash for the driver when he shows up. There has been no other contact with the buyer since then. I advised him not to send or give anyone the money as the check can still be voided and to work with the bank. I also advised him to call 911 if anyone shows up.