Crime & Safety

$2,500 Lost to Scam from Online 'Friend'

Oak Forest police report, Nov. 9.

A 53-year-old Oak Forest man targeted by a scammer lost more than $2,500, according to police.

The crime, which involved a friend the man had met online claiming to be in Nigeria, was reported on Nov. 9 but the fraud actually happened between June 14 and June 18, according to an Oak Forest police report.

In two transfers, the Oak Forest man wired $507 and $2,000, the report states. He received back a check for $3,200 from the "friend" that a bank employee did not believe was real.

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The man was first asked for money to aid in the "friend" getting into the U.S., the report states. The second payment for $2,000 was to help with a problem in customs. After that transfer, the Nigerian man claimed he would pay back the money, with $6,000 extra, if another $400 payment was sent. The Oak Forest man never sent the last payment.

In October, the Oak Forest man received a check for $3,200 but, when he went to cash it at a Chase branch, was told that the routing and account numbers were cut off, the report states. A bank then opened a fraud investigation into the check. The Oak Forest man also later spoke with Western Union, which he had used to send the money.

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Police blotter information is provided by the Oak Forest Police Department. Charges are not evidence of guilt. They are a record of police actions taken on a given day, and persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. If you or a family member are charged or cited and the case is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to notify the editor. We will verify and report the outcome.


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