NEW KENT, Va. — An 86-year-old New Kent woman lost over $11,000 after scammers posed as her bank and convinced her to withdraw cash and purchase gift cards to protect her account from hackers.
The New Kent County Sheriff's Office is now investigating and warning residents about a rise in bank imposter fraud.
Edith Minor said the ordeal began when she opened her computer and saw what appeared to be an urgent security alert.
"I went to get on my computer because I had to do some research on it, and when I opened it up there, it went off like red alert, red alert," Minor said.
Minor said the message warned someone was trying to hack into her accounts. She called what she believed was a legitimate number connected to her bank, Wells Fargo. Investigators say the person on the other end of the line was not who they claimed to be.
The caller contacted Minor more than 20 times and instructed her to withdraw her money for safekeeping.
"He said that, 'I want you to go down to your bank and draw or get your money, and we're going to put it in a treasure, and we're going to try to stop the hackers from going into your account,'" Minor said.
Following the caller's instructions, Minor withdrew over $11,000 from her checking and savings accounts, then bought gift cards at multiple stores and read the card numbers over the phone.
"Several places he told me to go. He said go to a Publix to get the gift card, and go to Lowe's," Minor said.
The total loss came to $11,500 which she says was some of her savings.
"That was a lot of money," Minor said.
It wasn't until the caller asked her to take out an additional $5,000 loan from her bank that Minor sensed something was wrong.
"He said, I want you to go to your bank and want you to borrow $5,000. Red flag, red flag," Minor said.
When Minor finally called the real Wells Fargo, she learned there had never been any suspicious activity on her account. By then, her money was gone.
"I see all the signs now that I was not aware of when I was going through the process," Minor said.
The New Kent County Sheriff's Office is now investigating the case. Sheriff Lee Bailey said this type of crime, known as bank imposter fraud, is not uncommon and that reports of scam calls have increased since the start of the year. He said scammers often pressure victims to stay silent.
"He always told me, don't share this with no one. Don't talk to nobody about it," Minor added.
Bailey said there is no guarantee Minor will recover her money and often times the imposters are hard to track.
"A lot of times the scammers are not even located in the area. They may be in another state or even another country, so it can be very difficult," said Sheriff Bailey.
Minor said it's important to share what happened to her to protect others.
"I see it all the time on the news, somebody being scammed. But I never thought it would be me. I hope that someone hearing this story tonight will realize that, don't trust everyone," Minor said.
Bailey urged anyone who believes they have been targeted by a scam to report it immediately and contact their bank as soon as possible.
"We highly recommend that you do not provide any information. Two, if someone calls posing as your bank or claiming to be your bank that you hang up," Bailey said.
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