Two arrested after Albany man nearly scammed out of 37,000 dollars
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Two suspects are in custody after attempting to scam an Albany man out of over $35,000, authorities said.
According to the Albany Police Department, a man told them that sometime around Christmas he believes his phone got a virus after clicking a link in a solitaire app.
After he clicked the link, the man said he started receiving calls from someone named 'Chris Wilson' claiming to be a PayPal employee and telling him that his personal information was compromised.
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Shortly after, the man said he was contacted by two other people named 'Eddy Cooper' and 'Mack Jones' who said they worked for the Edward Jones financial department and that the man had 'been hacked into' and $37,500 had been stolen.
The suspect then told the man he needed to deposit an equal amount of money to 'mirror' the money that was stolen so they could void the transaction.
Police said the victim was then told to deposit $10,000 into a Bitcoin Depot Kiosk where 'Mack' had set up an account for him.
After depositing the $10,000, the man was then told to have the rest of the money at his home where a courier would pick it up the next day.
Finally, the man became suspicious and contacted police which is when authorities said they set up a sting operation.
On Feb. 4, a white BMW arrived with two suspects inside to pick up the money, and an adult man, known as 'Tom,' came to the door.
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After providing a passcode to an undercover officer 'Tom,' who was later identified as Yong Xue was taken into custody. The car's driver, Zhen He, was also taken into custody.
Police said that the two men are Chinese nationals and that their consulate was notified and the FBI and Assistant United States Attorney were also contacted to help investigate.
Authorities said they believe there could be more victims and anyone who recognizes the suspects or who has had similar interactions is asked to contact Albany police.
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