82 Year-Old Man Tricked Into Sending Thousands To Scammer

WILLOW SPRING – A Johnston County senior citizen was recently defrauded out of $16,000.

The 82 year-old victim said he received a text message that appeared to be an alert message from Wells Fargo asking him to confirm he had made a $500 purchase in Miami, Florida. The victim was instructed to call a phone number in the text message if he did not make the charge.

The man called the number and was tricked into thinking he was talking with a Wells Fargo financial specialist. He was transferred to another person who pretended to be a FBI agent.

The fraudsters told the victim his money was not safe in his Wells Fargo account and to withdraw $16,000 and send to a Chase bank account number they provided.

Only later did the man realized he had been defrauded.