Police recover money scammed from senior citizen in Plum's Holiday Park neighborhood

Plum police want to remind residents to be wary of scams after they were able to recover money swindled from a senior citizen in Holiday Park.

A woman was contacted via email by scammers Sept. 16 seeking a $199 renewal of firewall protection for her computer, Plum Police Officer Jake Plonski reported.

She replied and said she wanted to cancel her subscription, which she did not have, with a San Francisco company listed on the email, police said.

The scammers changed the figure to $9,199 in another message, and said they refunded that amount to the woman’s account by accident.

Plonski said the scammers then told the woman she could keep the $199 renewal fee, plus $200 for her trouble, if she would send them $8,800 back via FedEx to a Walgreens in Florida.

Scammers also called the woman from a New York number and identified themselves as being from a “Geek Squad” to further convince her to send money.

The woman sent the $8,800 and called police the next day after thinking something was suspicious, Plonski said.

“After reviewing the email, it was pretty obvious that it was suspicious and that it was a scam,” Plonski said.

He said a FedEx manager in the borough contacted the Florida business and assisted in stopping the scammers from getting the money. The woman will be repaid via check.

Plonski said he called the New York number. A man on the other line refused to disclose his qualifications or employee identification, and later hung up and did not answer repeated calls.

The Seminole County (Fla.) Sheriff’s Office was also contacted as part of the investigation.

Plum Detective Ken Farmerie and Sgt. James Miller assisted Plonski.

Farmerie said professional scammers use computers to create any number to show up on a victim’s caller ID, and most victims might not reach out to police for a while after the fact due to embarrassment or other feelings of being ripped off.

“A lot of times we don’t get these calls until the money is delivered,” Farmerie said. “You’d like to make an arrest, but it’s a victory to get this person’s money back. … How quickly you jump on these cases is very important. We responded quickly, and with help of Sgt. Miller found a way to intercept the money.”

Police said the public should be suspicious of accounts they do not readily recognize as their own, or receiving bills from a company in a manner they are not used to such as an email when they receive paper invoices.

People also should never send large amounts of cash through the mail, Farmerie said.

Mayor Harry Schlegel at this month’s council meeting commended his officers for their quick action and recovering the resident’s funds.