RICHFIELD, Wis. — An elderly woman who could've been scammed thousands of dollars notified authorities and then helped them catch the suspect in a bitcoin scam sting.
"It's important for other possible victims or people who might look at an email to see if, 'Hey, maybe there is something up with this?' Trust your gut instinct on it," Detective Luke Wilhelm said. "Don't immediately see what you're reading and go with it.
According to the Washington County major crimes detective, bitcoin email scams are a growing problem in the community. He said attackers typically go after the elderly and people living with disabilities.
Watch: 86-year-old Richfield woman helps deputies catch scammer
He said someone pretending to be Geek Squad emailed a Richfield woman and asked her for a subscription cancellation fee. The woman clicked the bad link, but became suspicious when the person requested cash or bitcoin. So, she called deputies and worked with them to catch the alleged culprit.
"Working with this victim, she was phenomenal. You might say 86 year's old, but she was sharp as a tack. She was very fun to work with," Det. Wilhelm said. "When she started receiving the phone calls we were able to coach her properly on ways to keep that suspect on the line to be able to come down and take care of the money."
Wilhelm said the scammer called the woman, flew from California to Chicago and then drove up to her home for an arranged $26,500 cash pickup.
"In working with her directly we were able to get a great investigation together," he said. "Make an arrest, have her keep her money and we're also now holding someone accountable for it."
The alleged scammer fell for the sting and was arrested at the woman's home. Wilhelm hopes other potential victims follow in her footsteps and call law enforcement before losing their money to a scammer.
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