Authorities in Quincy, Massachusetts, have taken into custody two men from Brooklyn, New York, involved in a sophisticated scam that swindled an elderly resident out of $120,000. The two accused, Shaoquin Liu, 27, and Shiwang Ning, 33, face charges of larceny over $1,200 by false pretenses and conspiracy. The scheme reportedly began with a deceptive Microsoft notification and led to the victim being conned into handing over large sums of cash, as reported by Boston 25 News.
Liu and Ning, who made their first appearance in Quincy District Court this past Wednesday, posed as the victim’s financial institutions and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Deceptively having convinced the victim to withdraw and hand over funds to them claiming to be a safeguard against suspicious online activities, as a woman, unidentified yet as part of the scam, coerced the senior into believing her accounts were compromised, according to Boston.com.
The Quincy Police Department, recognizing the gravity of the situation, welcomed the arrests and emphasized their commitment to increasing awareness about similar methods of web-based fraud targeting the senior demographic. Emphasizing the importance of vigilance, Police Chief Mark Kennedy said, "I am happy that these two criminals were arrested by our Detectives and our department will intensify our efforts to educate our city’s senior population about these scams and web based fraud." Details of the arrest were also corroborated by Boston.com.
These types of scams remain alarmingly effective, with seniors having been conned out of more than $12 billion in just the previous year. Teresa Rogg, a victim of the scam explained, "Don't listen to them when they say don't talk to somebody," she added "Always talk to somebody and make sure you're doing the right thing." She told WCVB her experience where she was duped into believing her money was secured by the FBI itself..
