Local Woman Scammed Out Of $200 By Phony Sweepstakes Caller
The suspect called on Nov. 6 to tell the woman he was on his way to her home with a camera crew and a check.
A woman in unincorporated Stone Mountain told DeKalb County police that she was tricked out of $200 in prepaid cards by someone who claimed she'd won the Publishers Clearinghouse Sweepstakes.
The man called the woman on Nov. 6. He told her he was on his way with a camera crew to deliver the sweepstakes check. The man told the woman that she needed to pay the taxes, closing costs and initial registration before she could get the money, according to the report.
The man told her to go to Walmart to purchase two $100 Green Dot (prepaid) cards. She did, and redeemed them to the man.
He called her back and told her she needed to send more money; she told him she didn't have any more.
The caller then asked if she had a credit card that was "maxed out" so he could apply some of the winnings to pay off the card. The victim gave the man the number on her daughter's credit card, which was supposedly at its limit, according to the report.
The man kept calling back to say he and his camera crew were on their way with her check.
They never showed up.