A suburban woman who believed she was talking to a dashing Hollywood actor online for months was scammed out of more than $60,000 when it was revealed that she was talking to an imposter, police confirmed.
According to the Evanston Police Department, the victim reportedly sent approximately $62,000 in gift cards over the course of six months to someone posing as Kevin Costner on the social media site Telegram. The victim was under the believe the payments were an investment, the police department said, and would be converted into cryptocurrency.
The money was not recovered, and the victim was advised to contact her credit card companies, police said.
“Due to the nature of the crime, an arrest is highly unlikely,” police added.
The Federal Trade Commission in 2018, warned of similar scams, where imposters pose as celebrities on social media in an attempt to lure victims into sending them money, gift cards or more.
“They’re asking fans to send money for all kinds of supposed reasons – like claiming a prize, donating to a charity, or giving help of some kind,” the FTC said in a release dated Aug. 8, 2018. Some celebs do raise money for legitimate causes. But you want to be sure the cause—and the person asking you to support it—are real.”
“Imposter scams come in many varieties, but they all work the same way: a scammer pretends to be someone you trust to convince you to send them money,” the release went on to say. “And that’s exactly what these celebrity imposters are trying to do.”
The FTC advised those who do get contacted on social media by what appears to be a celebrity to first search fort he celebrity’s name online, along with the word “scam.”
“Do the same with any charity or cause they’re asking you to support,” the FTC advised. “Never send money, gift cards or prepaid debit cards to someone you don’t know or haven’t met – even celebrities you meet on social media.”
The FTC encourages those who do wind up sending money to contact the company used to send them money, tell them the transaction was fraud, and ask them to reverse it.
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