A recent scam has seen a Columbus resident swindled out of their savings after a fraudulent scheme played on fears of a compromised bank account. On October 9, the unnamed victim was lured into a classic tech support scam that took a disturbing turn when the criminal took the unusual step to physically collect the stolen funds from the victim's residence. The fraud started with a message alerting the victim of a supposed issue with their computer, prompting a call to a phony Microsoft support number. The con artist at the other end of the line convinced the victim that their checking account was under attack by hackers.
According to the Columbus Division of Police release, the victim was instructed to withdraw money from their checking account to supposedly "transfer the money to another account" for safety. Unfortunately, the scammer did not stop at remote deception, coming in person to collect the cash. The scam didn't just end there; the victim was contacted a second time, coaxed to withdraw additional funds—and once again, the suspect brazenly arrived to pick up the money.
Community members with knowledge of the incident can anonymously contact Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at 614-461-TIPS(8477) or directly converse with Detective McCotter by dialing 614-724-4629 or sending an email to [email protected].
