WESTLAKE, Ohio — On Tuesday, the Westlake Police Department released body camera video from a recent incident where they said a 71-year-old woman was being scammed.
According to Captain Jerry Vogel, the 71-year-old woman deposited thousands of dollars into a crypto ATM at a Westlake convenience store.
Vogel said the convenience store clerk tried to tell the woman she was getting scammed.
But Vogel said she didn’t listen to them, so Westlake Police were called and started asking her questions.
“Are you normally investing in Bitcoin?” an officer asked.
The woman told officers she couldn’t talk because someone convinced her she was talking to Fifth Third’s Fraud Division.
“Ma’am, if somebody called you to do this, you are being scammed,” said the officer.
“They’re on the phone. They can hear everything,” said the woman.
“Right, they’re scamming you. We deal with this all the time,” said the officer.
“If I don’t do this now, I’ll lose the money,” said the woman.
Eventually, the woman finally gave in and hung up the phone.
It cost her nearly $5,500.
"I can’t believe I fell for it, though. That’s the thing. I’m so careful and stuff,” said the woman.
Vogel is hopeful they’ll be able to get some of that woman’s money back. In the meantime, he reminds people to be careful.
"Please talk to your relatives, especially now around the holidays, everyone will be seeing relatives. Maybe they don't always see. Talk to your relatives. Mostly the elderly are falling victim to these types of scams,” said Vogel.
