$30,000 Stolen from Wells Fargo Customer in Prolonged Phone Scam

A Georgia resident lost $30,000 to scammers who posed as bank and law enforcement officials. The scheme began in July when the man received a call from someone claiming to represent American Express.

The caller told him that someone was using a card in his name, then transferred him to people who claimed to be officers with the New York City Police Department.

After speaking with three supposed NYPD officials, the victim was allegedly told that his Bank of America account had been linked to money laundering for a cartel. He was then connected with someone posing as an FBI agent, who said he would be detained unless he provided information about accounts he held with Fidelity Investments and Wells Fargo.

The victim sent screenshots showing the balances in both accounts, although he concealed the account numbers. The alleged fraudsters then instructed him to purchase a new cellphone so they could monitor his communications through the encrypted messaging app Signal.