An 84-year-old Massachusetts man thought he had an extra $100,000 deposited in his bank account. But it turned out to be a scam — costing him about $100,000.
The Hingham resident told police he received a call from a man who claimed he was from PayPal at the end of November. The caller told him $100 had “accidentally” been deposited into his bank account. He asked the 84-year-old to open his account on his computer and go to several other sites, police said.
“This likely gave the caller remote access to the residents computer and open bank account,” the Hingham Police Department warned.
The caller then changed his story and said the amount deposited by mistake was actually $100,000 — not $100.
“The resident looked at his account online and saw what appeared to be a $100,000 deposit in his bank account,” police said.
He was then told to go to his bank and get two cashier’s checks for $49,800 each and mail the checks overnight to an address in North Carolina to pay the money back.
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The caller warned the 84-year-old that if he was questioned at his bank about the large transactions, he should tell them he was buying a car. However, the bank did not question the withdrawals.
He mailed out the checks and the man lost about $100,000, police said.
“Please share this information with senior relatives or friends,” police wrote.
