The Randolph County Sheriff’s Office has received a report of a scam/fraud. In this incident, the caller told the victim they were calling from PayPal and led the victim to believe that he/she had done something wrong and that the IRS was involved. The scammer requested that the victim give him the online banking information to better assist the victim. The scammer convinced the victim to take money from the bank account and deposit it into a Bitcoin machine. Since they only take increments of $2,000, and following several transactions, the scammer advised he would send someone to the victim’s house to retrieve payment. A subject did arrive at the address and retrieved the additional money. A scammer coming to a residence is not something we’ve seen in the past, and this is very dangerous.
Later, the scammer requested additional money, but the bank realized something was suspicious when the victim made the request. The bank met with the victim, viewed evidence, and changed all the banking and account information to protect the victim via online means.
If you, or anyone you know, gets a call of similar content, please be aware that this is a scam, and do not become a victim. HANG UP! Block the number. Please tell others to make them aware of this type of scam and others in hopes of saving someone the trauma and financial loss of being a victim of a scam.
If you or someone you know has questions about a call they have received, they can contact law enforcement with details before they ever send anyone any money.
Name of Defendants:
Kevin Wayne Hayes
Age: 53
