A SCAMMER posed as a representative from Chase Bank, duping a woman into handing over $15,000 to fix an issue with her account.
Police in New York City are searching for a suspect who claimed to be an employee of the bank, calling the 77-year-old victim on May 20.
The NYPD is looking for a suspect in Staten Island who claimed to be a Chase employeeCredit: NYPD
The suspect, a woman, allegedly tricked an elderly woman into handing over $15,000 after convincing her that there was an issue with her Chase Bank accountCredit: Getty
The phony representative told the woman that her account had been hacked and she needed to send over money to fix the problem.
The suspect took a cab to the woman’s home in Great Kills, Staten Island to get the $15,500 from her before getting back inside the taxi and leaving.
Footage from a doorbell camera captured the suspect, a woman described as having a heavy build with glasses, dark hair in a ponytail, and wearing a blue face mask.
She was last seen wearing a black sweatshirt with gold letters and black jeans.
Anyone with information is being urged to call the New York Police Department.
SCAMS ON THE RISE
Scams are becoming more elaborate across the US with several entities warning consumers to watch out for telltale signs.
The United States Postal Service warned against several text message scams called “smishing.”
Similar to phishing scams, smishing deals with unsolicited SMS messages.
“Victims will typically receive a deceptive text message that is intended to lure the recipient into providing their personal or financial information,” said the USPS.
“These scams often attempt to impersonate a government agency, bank, or other company to lend legitimacy to their claims.”
Scammers often try to trick victims by saying their accounts have been compromised, a package is waiting for them, or there’s an issue with their shipping address.
Minnesota resident April Hegna faced a similar incident in May after receiving a message about a suspicious $500 purchase made at Walgreens, reported NBC affiliate KTTC-TV.
She later received a call from a number matching her bank’s with the caller claiming to be an employee.
The caller sent Hegna a code from an email that looked to be from the bank.
However, days later, Hegna learned that $9,300 had been taken from her account.
Often in these cases, it’s rare for the victim to get their money back as scammers will dupe them into authorizing transactions or withdrawals.
Because of this, it’s hard for banks to investigate since the victim gave their permission.
Banks often tell consumers that they should never reply to messages that ask for personal details.
Legitimate establishments will never ask for customers to send one-time access codes or PINs.
The U.S. Sun has reached out to Chase and the NYPD for comment.
Experts warn consumers to be aware of messages and phone calls from people claiming to be bank employeesCredit: Getty
Scams are being more popular across the US, stealing people’s private informationCredit: Getty