State troopers are investigating a call received last Monday from a man in Irwin who said he had been scammed out of $18,000.
Police said the man received an email from who he thought was McAfee Security for his computer. The person said they refunded him $20,000 instead of $2,000, and that they deposited too much money into his bank account.
They told him to withdraw $17,900, go to the Sunoco on Lowry Avenue in Jeannette and use a machine there to convert that money into Bitcoin.
Once he did, he was told to send a photo of the receipt with the information on how the company could access the money.
Just like that, that man lost all that money.
“Unfortunately, once they start walking you down that path, you’re headed for a scam,” said Trooper Steve Limani of the Pennsylvania State Police.
These types of scams are common and Limani says it can happen to anyone.
“This gentleman had a lot of faith and, in his mind, tried to do the right thing and give this money back, but ultimately he got scammed and I think it’s terrible that this happened,” he told Channel 11’s Andrew Havranek.
Limani said currently troopers are investigating six Bitcoin scams similar to the one involving a victim in Westmoreland County in the past month.
‘They are different, except at the end. At the end of the scam it always goes to Bitcoin,” Limani said.
He said this makes it harder to investigate these cases and track where the money is going. Limani said scammers are often successful this time of year as people let their guard down around the holidays.
The best way to keep your money safe if you receive such an email or phone call? Talk to your own bank.
“The bank staff are all trained at almost every one of these banks,” Limani said. “So if you just tell them why you do some of the things that you do, and just ask them for advice, they can tell you right away, because they’ve probably had a dozen people be part of that same scenario.”
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