CLAYTON – A 56 year-old Johnston County woman lost thousands of dollars in a scam.
It all started when the woman received an email that appeared to originate from PayPal but it was from a scammer. The email appeared to be a receipt for a Bitcoin purchase the victim did not make, and to call a number in the email if there were any questions.
The victim called the phone number and was told by the scammers her identity had been stolen in Texas and her bank account was no longer secure.
They instructed her to make two withdrawals from her bank, totaling $18,000, and to deposit the money in a BitCoin account for “safekeeping.” The victim did as she was instructed, only later realizing she had been defrauded.
PayPal says never pay a suspicious invoice or money request. Don’t call phone numbers in the invoice note or open suspicious links. And never send money to a crytocurrency wallet mentioned in an invoice or money request.
