Woman Scammed Out of $6K Forced to Spin in Circles on FaceTime by Scammer

According to a police report, a woman was scammed out of $6,000 and was then coerced by the scammer to undress and spin in circles on FaceTime in order to “confirm her identity.”

On July 23, the Mayfield Heights police reported that a woman from Ohio was contacted by an individual posing as a bank representative. The man claimed there was a possible fraudulent charge on her account and advised her to transfer her funds to prevent it from being stolen.

The victim complied with the scammer’s instructions and recorded the bank account numbers provided, as well as adding her debit card information to her Apple Wallet.

During their phone conversation, she visited a nearby Huntington Bank branch and withdrew $6,000 in cash. Subsequently, she was instructed to deposit the funds into a separate debit card account at an ATM.

Despite her attempts to withdraw the funds from the account, the transaction was unsuccessful. The woman returned home, but the scammer continued to contact her.

The woman stayed on the phone with the crook and went to the Huntington Bank in Mayfield Heights and withdrew $6,000 in cash. https://t.co/obyqVcJiQ4

— Cleveland 19 News (@cleveland19news) July 31, 2024

According to police, the perpetrator used FaceTime without activating his camera and asked for a “full body scan”in order to confirm the victim’s identity following a failed transaction. He deceived her into removing her clothes and twirling around as a means of verification.

After hearing the fraudster’s laughter, the victim finally realized that the call and transaction were a scam. In an attempt to retrieve her money, she tried to withdraw it but was unsuccessful.

After reporting the fraud to the bank, the woman was informed that she was liable for the missing funds. However, she eventually contacted the Mayfield Heights Police Department to report the theft and the FaceTime conversation.

According to Sheryl Harris, Director of the Cuyahoga County Department of Consumer Affairs and the Scam Squad, recovering money from scammers is a challenging task. However, she mentioned that there are instances where law enforcement can locate scammers and their criminal networks, which may result in the retrieval of some funds.

Harris stressed the importance of promptly reporting these types of crimes to the local police department. This allows authorities to apprehend the scammers and attempt to recover the stolen funds.