EVERETT – April Thorpe won $400 worth of airline tickets for writing some checks. She just needed to hand over her bank account number to claim the prize.
Sound too good to be true?
Then it probably is, police warn.
Over the phone, through the mail or on the street, scam artists are casting a wide net to snag anyone willing to buy into their bogus pitches. Victims are bilked out of thousands of dollars or face the headache of clearing up ruined credit.
Some of the scams or variations have been around for a long time. Newer ones are cropping up as crooks think up new schemes and turn to the Internet to find victims worldwide, according to police.
“People are still being victimized. We’re seeing an increase in frauds and scams,” Everett Sgt. Gary Woodburn said.
To keep up with the growing problem, the department created the Financial Crimes Unit two years ago. In the late 1980s, the department had two detectives working fraud cases. In 2004, four detectives and Woodburn handled about 1,000 complaints.
The majority of the reports continue to be for forged checks or prescriptions, but there’s been a spike in scams.
The rackets range from fake telemarketers fishing for banking information to aid them in making counterfeit checks to bogus lotteries and online scams.
Scam artists promise millions in grants, inheritances or lottery winnings for a fee or claim to need a bank account number to deposit the money. The windfall never comes, or the account is drained.
The schemers weave elaborate sob stories to reel in their victims.
Woodburn said in recent months scam artists have approached people on the street claiming they wanted to donate money to a church or to the homeless but had no way to exchange their foreign currency.
Victims are asked to withdraw money from their accounts in exchange for the foreign currency, which they’re told is worth more than what they’ve withdrawn.
Thorpe figured she was targeted after her bag was stolen late last month from a friend’s car outside an Everett restaurant. Her name, phone number and address were on some paperwork in the bag.
The next week, her husband received a phone call with the offer for free airline tickets in exchange for the checking account numbers.
“I didn’t think there was anything in the bag worth stealing,” April Thorpe said.
The second time the scammers called, Thorpe told them she didn’t have an account.
While more and more people are reporting that scam artists have approached them, the majority aren’t falling for the schemes, Woodburn said.
“Most are realizing it’s too good to be true, but all it takes is one bite,” he said.
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