An arrest has been made after a California man scammed a Baxter County woman out of $71,000. The man, 31-year-old Wenyan Song of West Covina, California, is also charged for scamming a victim in Carroll County out of $27,800. Both instances were computer scams, but they were different in nature.
According to the probable cause affidavit from the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office, the Baxter County victim is an 86-year-old woman who is a widow and lives alone. She reported she started having problems with her computer and a pop-up window appeared telling her to call Microsoft and provided a phone number. She called the number and spoke to a man named “Jack” in the “Identity Theft Department.”
The victim spoke to “Jack” several times over the next two weeks and he endeared himself to her and gained her trust. He convinced her the problem with her computer was hackers who were attempting to steal her money. He convinced the victim the hackers could be involved with her neighbors, her bank, her church, or anyone she knows, so she should isolate herself from everyone and trust only him…