WAYNE COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- The Wayne County Sheriff's Department and West Virginia State Police are warning residents of a new scam after an elderly man got a call from what appeared to be the social security office.
"They stated his name was registered to a vehicle that was used in illegal activity in Texas and two males were arrested as a result," Sheriff Rick Thompson said in a press release.
According to the press release, a man posing as Lieutenant Jackson from the Attorney General's Office got on the line with the victim, saying that his social security number would be suspended, his bank accounts would be frozen and he could be held criminally liable if he did not cooperate.
"The male posing as Lt. Jackson gave the victim step by step instructions on how to withdraw his money out of the bank or in this case, use Walmart gift cards to put his money on," Thompson said.
Sheriff Thompson says the man posing as Lt. Jackson had the victim read the numbers on the back of the gift cars once they were activated and told the victim the Attorney General's Office would overnight him a debit card so he could have access to his money after they froze his accounts.
The victim lost nearly $1,000 in the scam.
"West Virginia State Police and Wayne County Sheriff Office used the number given by the victim and called to validate the incident. Using a fake name and birthday, the officers were given the same story saying that name had been registered to a vehicle out of Texas used in illegal activity," according to the release. "The male posing as LT. Jackson spoke with officers and gave step by step instructions on how to withdraw money out and what to do with it."
The 347-903-1997 number was traced from New York City.
Deputies warn residents not to give any information if you receive calls from this number.