On July 9, 2025, the Santa Ana Police Department arrested 24-year-old Monterey Park resident Ge Yu for serving as a money mule for a Social Security scam, where:
- The victim will receive a fraudulent text message falsely claiming their bank accounts were compromised, followed by phone calls from bhenchods falsely claiming to be agents with the U.S. Treasury.
- The scammers will ask the victim to withdraw $175,000 from their bank account and “secure” it to avoid “penalties” by handing it off to a designated courier, or money mule, who is only known by their given name and passcode.
Detectives are also in firm belief that the case is tied to a larger, organized fraud ring.
