Charlotte Perkins called Huntington Bank the moment a suspicious call warned her someone was trying to drain her account. The next day, $98,000 was gone anyway from the business account she uses to run her Cleveland security guard company, and more than a year later she is still waiting to get it back.
Perkins told News 5 Cleveland that a caller impersonating Huntington warned her someone was trying to withdraw money from her account, so she called the bank herself before any funds moved. She said Huntington told her the accounts were fine and that no money had been withdrawn. By the next day, the $98,000 was gone, routed to an account with Santander in Florida, according to Perkins. She said she was devastated when she learned the money had disappeared.
When she pressed Huntington for answers, Perkins said the bank told her the loss was not its fault, and that Santander told her to contact the company directly. She said she considers herself a victim three times over — of whoever took the money, of Santander and of Huntington itself. Cleveland Police have confirmed to the same station that they are “actively investigating” her case, more than a year after it happened.
A Second Cleveland-Area Victim Speaks Out
Perkins is not the only Huntington customer describing sudden, unexplained losses. Christina Derrow, of Navarre, told the station that in late June she checked her personal savings account and found about $6,700 missing, money she said had been sent to a Cash App account under the name Alejandro. Derrow, who receives Social Security, said she did not know anyone named Alejandro and did not even know what Cash App was…