FREDERICKTOWN — A Fredericktown resident recently lost over $5,000 in an Internet lottery scam, and Police Chief Jerry Day warns that others in the village continue to be targeted by thieves using the same tactic.
According to Day, in mid-December a Fredericktown man reported that he had won over $2 million in the South African lottery, and was having trouble collecting his winnings.
After sending a cashier’s check to cover processing charges to the South African Revenue Service, the man was told he would need to send another check to pay for more paperwork. Thinking he would then be able to collect the $2 million, the man sent another check to the address in South Africa.
When the Fredericktown Police became involved, and informed the man he was the victim of an Internet scam, he stopped sending money, but has continued to receive demands for more processing fees from South Africa by e-mail and telephone.
“They called him on his cell phone the one day, when he was sitting in my office,” Day said.
Day informed the FBI, which handles complaints of this nature. According to the FBI, over 1 million complaints have been filed with the Internet Crime Complaint Center. Consumers are able to file complaints regarding suspected Internet fraud directly online with the FBI at www.ic3.gov.
Ironically, in an attempt to reassure the victim that the lottery was legitimate in order to steal more money, the thieves then sent a forged e-mail from FBI Director Robert S. Mueller on phony FBI New York field office letterhead, urging the man to continue to deal with the thieves in South Africa.
“This particular transaction is legal by our final investigation today,” the fake e-mail read. “You should strictly follow the procedures of this department (Eagle Treasure RSA and South African Revenue Services), because as a department, they have their own legal procedures which we have examined and confirmed legal.”
The FBI issued a press release in July warning that hoax e-mails using the FBI director’s name and likeness had recently begun to be used by thieves in an attempt to legitimize fraudulent lotteries and phony inheritances. The FBI does not send unsolicited e-mail to people verifying inheritances or lottery winnings. The FBI’s Web site warns consumers to “beware of any e-mail received from an unknown sender which either requests personal information or asks for money for any reason.” The FBI asks that any e-mail fraud of this nature be reported online at their ic3 Web site.
Day said the man who was swindled out of the money probably does not have any recourse to get back the $5,000 back. He warned that any offer received over the Internet to collect lottery winnings in another country is fraudulent, and any solicitations should be deleted without being opened.
“If it seems too good to be true, just like they say, it probably is,” Day said. Further information about computer safety tips can be found on the FBI Web site at www.fbi.gov.