Courtesy of victim’s nephew
After a criminal told an Illinois man, 73, to buy eBay gift cards, the victim was left mostly with these worthless pieces of plastic since he gave the crook the codes to redeem them. The victim was given a credit from eBay for about $300 because the numbers on one card, his nephew surmises, weren’t relayed correctly.
Kicked out of credit union
It turned out the credit union expelled the couple because crooks had sent them four checks totaling $27,700, supposedly to cover the money they’d expended. The personal checks were from a Louisiana credit union but mailed from Michigan.
Three of the Louisiana checks bounced — one for $8,700 and two for $5,000 — and the Illinois credit union refused to accept the fourth, the nephew says.
Signatures faked
Contacted in Louisiana and shown copies of the checks, the wife of the supposed signatory tells AARP the documents are forgeries. Her husband, in his 80s and suffering from dementia, has been battling identity theft and bank fraud since he lost his wallet some time ago, she says. “In no way, shape or form” are the check signatures his.
What happened next sent the nephew’s…
