Stranger noticed terrified elderly woman at gas station ATM—her one call saved the woman from losing thousands
Being alert and responding with smart intervention when something seems aloof can be a real lifesaver. A woman named Myndi Jordan was filling up gas when she noticed an elderly woman panicking near an ATM at a gas station, per FOX 4 News. She seemed to be worried and in distress, but one particular observation made Jordan intervene. Thanks to her vigilance and smart action, the woman in her 80s was saved in the nick of time from losing thousands of dollars in a scam. Footage shared by the White Settlement Police Department reveals how the event unfolded.
The woman was at the gas station when she saw the senior at the ATM. She seemed distraught and had a lot of cash with her that she was depositing into the ATM. As soon as she observed the woman's actions, she knew something was off and dialed 911. "I noticed an elderly lady feeding thousands of dollars into the cryptocurrency machine. And the people on the phone sound like foreigners and they are Facetiming to make sure she is putting the money in the machine," Jordan told 911. The dispatcher asked her to get the woman to stop the transaction, but it was all in vain.
"I tried. She said she’s trying to correct the mistake that somebody else made," the stranger recounted. She felt awful about the sheer idea that something might be wrong and that the elderly woman would lose all her money. The woman was about to get scammed and had no idea. The scammer had reportedly been calling the elderly citizen all week and convincing her to deposit the money into her account. They claimed to be from the bank’s security team. After multiple calls, the scammer also sent an Uber to get the woman to an ATM, so she could make the deposit.
Being helpless, the senior got into the vehicle, withdrew $40,000 and reached the gas station where she was depositing the money into the ATM. Fortunately, Jordan spotted her before she could complete the transaction and verify it. Sergeant James Stewart arrived on the scene and immediately took control of the situation. He first asked the woman to stop putting in the money and took over the call to speak to the person. When they insisted on speaking to the elderly woman alone, Stewart called them out. "No, you are not going to speak to the customer anymore. You have spoken to the customer enough," he said. "You still haven’t got her name right, you freaking mo**n," he added.
"She never hit the submit button. He kept saying, ‘Hit the I’m done button.’ If she did that, the money would’ve been gone,” the officer explained. Fortunately, the woman received her $23,000 back. "I was pretty curt and mean. I was irritated not just as a police officer but as a human being," Stewart remarked. Unfortunately, there was no way to track the person or get their identity. However, both Jordan and Stewart were relieved that the woman’s earnings were saved. "It just could’ve been so different. I’m so thankful to God that it ended happily for her, and she can get her stuff back,” she said.
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