Hampton man nearly loses college fund to sophisticated scam — then gets it back

HAMPTON, S.C. (WTOC) - A Hampton man nearly lost an entire college fund to a scammer.

He now has the money back — thanks to a coordinated effort between the Hampton Police Department, a local bank, the U.S. Postal Service, and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office out of Texas.

In what officers call a rare victory against fraudsters, investigators were able to track down and intercept the victim’s money before it ever reached the scammer — and return it safely to his account.

An Elaborate Scam

According to Hampton Police investigators, the victim received a phone call from someone claiming to be a bank “executive security officer.” The caller told him that his bank account had been flagged as part of a fraud investigation.

The scammer said that if the man mailed money, it would help “catch the suspect.”

Officers say this was not a simple, one-off scam.

The caller knew a great deal about the victim — enough to build trust and make the story seem believable.

The victim ultimately mailed a substantial sum that had been set aside for a college fund.

But once the money was on its way, the scammer called again and asked for even more. That second call raised red flags for the victim, and he realized he had likely been duped.

He immediately contacted Hampton Police.

A Race to Intercept the Money

Once the victim reported what happened, Hampton investigators sprang into action. Working closely with a local bank, the post office, and law enforcement in Texas, they began tracking the package that contained the victim’s money.

The search led them to an abandoned house in Texas — a location investigators say was being used as a drop point by the scammer.

Authorities in Texas were able to intercept the package before it was picked up. From there, they arranged to return the funds back to the victim’s account in Hampton.

‘Almost Unheard Of’

Hampton Police Lieutenants Bradford Drawdy and Stacey Loadholt say recovering the money in cases like this is extremely rare.

“Twenty-three years, I have never seen it,” one lieutenant said.

“Twenty-nine, I’ve never seen it,” the other added.

“It’s almost unheard of, especially to get the money,” they continued. “Sometimes you’ll get a scammer, occasionally, but typically the money or the funds — or however they were scammed — you don’t recover that.”

In this case, persistence and cooperation between multiple agencies made the difference.

What To Do If You Suspect a Scam

Scams like this are increasingly sophisticated, often targeting people using personal details pulled from data breaches, social media, or public records to make their stories sound credible.

If you receive a suspicious call, text, email, or letter:

• Do not send money, gift cards, or cryptocurrency.
• Do not share personal or banking information over the phone unless you initiated the call using a trusted number.
• Hang up and call your bank directly using the number on the back of your card or on the bank’s official website.
• Contact law enforcement right away if you think you may have been targeted or have already sent money.

Hampton Police say if you have questions about whether something is a scam — or if you or a loved one has already fallen victim — you should reach out to your local law enforcement agency or your bank for help.

They hope this rare success story will encourage more people to report scams quickly, giving authorities the best possible chance to act before it’s too late.