Chatham County police recover more than $90,000 in scam cases

by Summer Swanson

CHATHAM COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) - The Chatham County Police Department has helped recover more than $90,000 in the last week for the victims of two separate scams.

“When money is taken by a scammer, it is often gone forever,” said Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley. “But in the last week, we’ve been able to recover all of the money lost for two victims because they quickly reported the crime to us. That allowed our officers and detectives to launch an investigation that stopped the funds from getting into the hands of the criminal.”

First case involved fake bank investigator

The first case happened when police said a victim sent more than $6,000 to a scammer who claimed to be a bank fraud investigator.

Second case began with pop-up warning

Police said the second victim lost more than $80,000 after a pop-up window appeared on their computer screen and told them their computer was infected with a virus. Police said the victim was eventually convinced to send the scammer money.

Chatham County Police Department investigators believe the two cases are unrelated. Both illustrate the importance of reporting the crime immediately.

“We often find that victims are too embarrassed or afraid to report that they’ve been scammed out of money until a great deal of time has passed,” Hadley said. “But when we quickly loop in financial institutions and other law enforcement, there are times where money can be recovered. Time is of the essence. Do not delay in calling us so we can quickly get to work, and hopefully, return to you what was lost.”