Gas station clerk noticed woman depositing large sums of money into Bitcoin machine — his response saved her from scammers

When it comes to finances, investments and such practices, people need to be extremely cautious of the data they share, the places they invest and the companies they interact with. An elderly woman from East Tawas, Michigan, nearly fell into a financial scam after receiving an unknown fraudulent notification and acting on it, per ABC 12 News. To her luck, a Shell Station Attendant, Jeremy Patterson, noticed the woman depositing large sums of money and made a smart move. The East Tawas Public Safety stated that it was his observation, smart understanding and swift vigilance that helped protect the woman. 

The Federal Trade Commission data shows that people lost over $12.5 billion to fraud last year. The woman received an email from Norton anti-virus. It stated, “Norton Anti-Virus was going to charge her $400 if she did not cancel her subscription,” the post revealed. The person contacting and connecting with her identified himself as “James Morgan.” He convinced the woman that she would receive a refund after she canceled the said subscription. However, for this, she would have to log in to her bank account. To make the story as trustworthy as possible, the person took the woman through different steps while slyly getting access to her online account and finances.

“James proceeded to advise the woman that she had accidentally added two extra zeros and informed the woman that the refund deposited into her account was $21,000 instead of $210.” Making it seem like a genuine error, the woman was then asked to withdraw the extra amount viz. $21,000 from her account and deposit it into a Bitcoin ATM Machine at the Shell Station. With the story making some kind of sense, the woman headed to the bank and withdrew the amount. The bank did question her actions but she insisted that she needed the money and they went ahead with the withdrawal. 

As suggested by the scammer, the woman went to the gas station’s Bitcoin machine and first sent a transaction of $900. This went straight to the scammer. “The second deposit for $9,000 was flagged by the Bitcoin ATM,” the post revealed. That’s when Patterson intervened. He had no idea of what was happening. He simply felt something was fishy and acted on his instincts. He called the Losco County Central Dispatch and said that he was worried a woman might be getting scammed as she had been depositing large amounts of money. The officers arrived immediately and spoke with the woman, who explained what she had been directed to do.

While the officers were present, the man reportedly called the woman again. This time, the officers answered. “JAMES stated, with a foreign accent, that he was an agent with Norton Anti-Virus. When officers identified themselves, JAMES quickly disconnected the phone call,” the post explained. East Tawas Officer Renshaw followed up on the case, getting further details from the woman and the bank. It was then learned that “the bank that the fraudster moved $21,000 from was one of the victim’s investment accounts, making the victim think the overpayment was accurate.” 

The scammers had gotten through quite the process of retrieving money from the woman wrongfully. The woman did lose $900 but thanks to the officer's follow-up, the remaining $9,000 that was deposited and not sent, was returned to the woman. Thanks to the clerk’s intervention, she was saved from further great financial loss. The woman had new bank accounts created and the bank managed the security to ensure no outsider had access. 

“A big thank you to the quick-thinking Shell Station Attendant. He saved our citizens from losing $20,000. This was a case of the worst in the world taking advantage of our vulnerable seniors. This time the bad guys were thwarted by a fellow citizen looking out for another," the post read. In another post, the department recognized Patterson for stepping up smartly and saving the woman. “Officer Renshaw presented a certificate of Appreciation, a department patch, a challenge coin, and a $100 Walmart card,” to Patterson for his exemplary work.