‘You’ve just been scammed’: Thief gets $500K from Evans man

EVANS, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - An Evans man lost more than half a million dollars in bitcoin to a thief who fully itted to the crime, according to authorities.

The bitcoin victim was scammed on Friday, according to the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office.

It happened after the victim got a phone call and was told his Coin Base had been compromised.

The caller told the victim he could fix the problem and sent the victim a text message with a link. The victim clicked the link, which gave the caller remote access to the phone.

The scammer entered the victim’s Coin Base app and transferred $539,582 to three separate s, according to deputies.

When the thief was was done, the victim asked if his was safe and the perpetrator said: “No. You’ve just been scammed,” and hung up.

A $63,000 mistake

Meanwhile, an Evans woman lost $63,000 in a similar high-stakes scam.

She told deputies that on April 12, she got a voicemail from “Norton” advising her there was a problem with her computer.

She called back and granted the person remote access to her computer, according to the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office.

Then she was told a mistake had been made and $41,500 had been incorrectly deposited into her checking . She got a cashier’s check to return the money and sent it to a person with a Texas address.

She then was convinced to get $15,000 in cash and transfer it via a bitcoin ATM.

Then she was convinced to go to Macy’s and purchase eight gift cards for $4,000 and then an additional five cards for $2,500. She said she got the information from the cards and sent it to the man.

She was then told there was a problem with her other s, so she went to her bank, where an employee suspected she was being scammed.

Other similar scams

• A Grovetown man told deputies that on April 12, he got what he believed to be an email from Best Buy in reference to a Totaltech three-year hip. The email stated his subscription was automatically renewed at a cost of $398. The victim called the number in the email and was told the company would need access to his computer to remove the software. The victim gave the person remote access, and the thief made a $4,000 withdrawal from his bank . The victim, however, did not fall for it when the scammer tried to get him to send $9,600 via a bitcoin ATM.
• An Evans woman told deputies that on April 14, a man stole $826 from her Cash App . It happened after she tried to buy items online and had some issues completing a transaction. She googled the company and called the number that was provided. She spoke with an unknown male who asked to take control of her phone to help her finish the purchase. While the male was in control of the phone, he went into her Cash App and transferred $826.

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