A scammer has been arrested in Marion County after attempting to scam an 82-year-old woman out of over $50,000, according to a press release from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.
The scam began when the victim’s computer began emitting a loud persistent alarm with multiple pop-up windows — one of the windows flashed a phone number for a “windows technician” who could assist. After calling the number, the problem was “fixed.”
However, shortly after a scammer posing as a Truist Bank manager convinced the victim someone had hacked her accounts, and had started using her name to open accounts for illegal activities (such as purchasing child pornography).
The victim was then instructed to send $7,300 via cryptocurrency, which she did. Even after this payment, the scammer continued to call and told the victim to buy $160,000 in gold to safeguard it with a “federal agent.”
Fortunately, after being instructed to go to a gold dealer in Jacksonville, the victim grew suspicious and contacted law enforcement. When the scammer, later identified as Jian Cao, arrived to pick up the “gold,” they were quickly arrested.
It was later discovered that Cao had traveled from California to act as the “federal agent” picking up the gold.
Cao is now behind bars in the Marion County jail with no bond.
The sheriff’s office reminds everyone to stay alert online and to never let anyone cause you to make hasty decisions when it comes to money. Always trust your gut feeling. If it doesn’t feel right, report it!
You can find the Facebook post here.
