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SCAMPULSE
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SCAMPULSE
If you know any contact information for [email protected], help other victims by adding it!
Scammer's email [email protected]
Country United States
Victim Location MA 02464, USA
Total money lost $10,000
Type of a scam Government Agency Imposter
On Tuesday, April 25, 2023, 4:03 PM EST through 4:28 PM EST, when I was working in the Disney 210 Celebration Office (210 Celebration Place, Celebration, Florida, 34747), a (915) 225-1901 number contacted my cellphone (iPhone 11) five times while I was at work. Initially, I did not pick up, but the caller kept calling, so at the sixth time, I was convinced the call was urgent and picked it up.
The caller told me in a threatening tone that she was from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (with the name Agent Katherine Barger, and badge ID ICE 837501), and there was an arrest warrant against me for money laundering and forged passport charges. I simply told them that she has the wrong number and I do not recognize what she was saying. Then, she asked me if I was Shelley Xue and if this was my number. I said yes. Next, she told me to go to the ICE.gov official website and made me verify that it was a legitimate “.gov” website, scroll to the page with the field offices’ numbers, and cross check that the (915) number she was calling from was indeed an actual ICE office. From the caller ID, the number was the exact same as the El Paso field office’s.
I asked them if I could speak to a lawyer or a trusted adult or family member. She said that I was part of an ongoing international investigation, and if I involved any third party or hung up the phone, I could be subject to immediate arrest and likely be given the death sentence. I was told to turn off all other devices because this was a part of an ongoing investigation. She told me that in the past, others have tried to move money transactions between their accounts in order to escape arrest. The “agent” threatened me once again with immediate arrest- including the death sentence once again- if she found out I was logged onto other devices. She told me that the “US surveillance department” had a tracker on my phone and my network activity, so she could tell if I was indeed cooperating with them. I was fearful for my life, so I shut down my work computer which I had to my side. Our company had just announced layoffs and I was living alone at that time. I was fearful of losing my job, my home, and my life.
In the meantime, while I was still on the phone with the (915) number, a (407) 246-2459 number kept calling my cell. Eventually, the “ICE agent” “found out” that someone was calling me and asked me who it was. I told her that I did not recognize the number, so she told me to search up the caller ID on my phone and relay it back to them. I searched it up, and the result was “Orlando Police Department”. This “agent” told me that the FBI found out that a Chinese passport found under my name had 7 bank accounts- including Wells Fargo, CitiBank, and Bank of America- that were associated with this money laundering scheme. She said that the Police were already involved in this investigation and had an arrest warrant already issued against me.
Another agent (who claimed to be Stacy Coreless, ICE 727156) went on the line, and told me to choose between two options, one of them was immediate arrest for a period of 3-5 days while a police officer conducts a background check, and the other was to fulfill immigration bond purchases within the next hour and turn that in when the local officer comes to visit me at my home after I completed the “immigration bonds”.
She then provided documents for the bond: she directed me to an official PDF on “Immigration Bonds” on the ICE.gov page, and once again asked me to verify that the page was an official government page, which it was. She asked me to read out loud the first two paragraphs, which explained how immigration bonds work. Then, she explained that each of these immigration bonds were purchases that I had to make with my bank account, and if I came out as not guilty after the background check, they’d refund me all my money that I spent on these “immigration bonds” including the interest. She claimed this was “Provision 18” and “Provision 20”. When I asked how I would be able to get my money back, she said it would come in the form of a check from the US government.
At this point, I was still suspecting the caller. I told them that something came up at work and I will call them back later. She raised her voice and said if I hung up the phone or made any outgoing calls, the police were already at the corner, ready to arrest me.
Indeed, the “Police” called me right away. I was told by “Officer Stacy” to pick up the phone, and she said that she would call me back right after I had a word with the “Police”. I picked up the call from the (407) 246-2459 number. Someone who claimed he was “Sergeant David Matthews” from the Orlando Police Department was on the phone with me, and he asked which option I chose. I said that they still had the wrong person, that I am a US citizen and do not have a Chinese passport. But the “Police” explained that perhaps I was a victim of identity fraud, that someone else was using my identity to commit those crimes, even reminding me that identity fraud was common. He told me that the FBI, the IRS, and multiple Chinese government agencies were involved in the case, and because charges were already pressed against my name, I’d have to make the immigration bond purchases in order to clear any charges against me, and if I failed to do so, I would be arrested, and this record would forever be associated with my social security number.
“Officer Stacy” from the (915) number called me right away after the “Police” hung up. She told me not to panic and she was “on my side”. She even said she feels the pain and stress that I was in as a victim of identity fraud, and said I needed to trust her as she is here to help me clear my name. She made me download the “AnyDesk” application on my iPhone. She explained that the app allows them to access the information on my phone screen, as well as track my physical location. She had me take a selfie and a photo of my driver’s license, which had my residential address. Then, she made me share the screen of my selfie and my license. She also made me disclose all my bank accounts and financial accounts with money that I am aware of, and once again threatened me with the arrest and the death sentence if I fail to comply.
That afternoon, there was lightning and a thunderstorm outside. I told her that I did not want to go outside. She reminded me that I will be arrested immediately and possibly given the death sentence if I don't comply. I asked to see the charges against me as well as the fraudulent Chinese passport issued under my name before I acted, and I asked how someone was able to apply for a Chinese passport in China under my name without my physical presence or physical ID cards. She explained when the police officer is scheduled to visit me for my background check, he would “explain the entire situation and hand over all necessary documents”, and now the best thing to do is immediately buy gift cards from Sephora, Target, Google Play, and Apple that would serve as the money attached to my immigration bond.
When I brought up that I had horrible anxiety, “Officer Stacy” told me I was overreacting, which could lead to people suspecting me, and would lead me to be arrested as I am breaking the protocol of “acting normal”. “Officer Stacy” explained this would give the “real culprit” a chance to hijack my network, and my identity and accounts would be further compromised.
Believing that these people were on my side, that evening, I withdrew $2,000 from my checking account at the nearest Bank of America ATM (700 Celebration Ave Suite 100, Celebration, FL, 34747) and spent all the money on gift cards at Walmart (3250 Vineland Rd, Kissimmee, FL 34746). “Officer Stacy” told me exactly which gift cards to purchase, the amount I needed to put in each, how many of each, and in how many separate transactions. I was also ordered to use my credit card and debit card to purchase $1,000 worths of gift cards. For all of the gift cards that I purchased, I had to scratch off the code and the pin and take a picture of the card, while sharing my phone screen with them on the “AnyDesk” application.
After “Officer Stacy” supposedly attached my “immigration bonds” to my profile, at around 8PM EST, a person who claimed to be the FBI deputy director was on the other end of the call with me. He claimed he was Officer Paul Abatte (with supposed badge number ICE 857521). He ordered me to call my bank and tell them that I approve of all of the transactions that were denied. Then, he told me none of my gift cards went through, so I needed to take the next day off from work to redo my immigration bonds, but not inform anyone else of this, as that could jeopardize their “investigation” and lead to my immediate arrest (and possible death sentence).
On April 26, these people made me fulfill two supposed immigration bond requests by the serial numbers of ICE 6449218 and ICE-CHI-402819, $7,500 total, both of which I was told I had to complete within an hour if I still wanted my free life. I withdraw their requested money from the nearest Bank of America bank counter (10900 Orangewood Blvd, Orlando, FL, 32821) in two separate visits, around 12:15PM EST and 2:30PM EST, and spent it buying gift cards at Publix’s (7640 W Sand Lake Rd, Orlando, FL 32819, 7524 Dr Phillips Blvd, Orlando, FL 32819, 5350 Central Florida Pkwy, Orlando, FL 32821), Walmart (8990 Turkey Lake Rd, Orlando, FL 32819), Whole Foods (8003 Turkey Lake Rd, Orlando, FL 32819), Target (11619 Daryl Carter Pkwy, Orlando, FL 32821), and Sephora (11501 Regency Village Dr, Orlando, FL 32821). I was told that after the background check, I would be reimbursed all the money I spent on gas, cellphone data, and water.
They continuously abused and tortured me for the entire day by denying me any opportunity to eat food, any opportunity to use the bathroom, or just take a rest, saying if I didn’t fulfill the bonds within the time frame, I could be immediately arrested. I told them I was sick, throwing up, and fainting, and I was told that I was acting uncooperative and if I kept my behavior up, I could be immediately arrested. The individual claiming to be “Paul Abbate” then joined the line and emailed me a fake “Federal Notice” PDF to my Gmail account, with the address [email protected]. I was denied the opportunity to sleep at night. I believed they had my account information and physical address, so I was too scared to do anything or tell anyone in fear of losing my life.
When I was not on the phone with these people on the evenings of April 25 and April 26, and the days of April 27 and April 28, they told me to text them updates of what I was doing in the moment, to the number (813) 578-5647, on an hourly basis. On the evening of April 26, around 7PM EST, on the phone, “Paul Abbate” ordered me to transfer all of my money from my Fidelity 401K/ Roth IRA accounts into my bank accounts, in order to stop my accounts from being frozen and the money lost forever. Then, on the phone with “Officer Stacy”, I asked when I can expect the money back, as I had to pay rent in two days, my student loans, my car loans, and was saving up for my birthday (which was in a week). “Officer Stacy” told me not to worry, and I will be able to make these payments on time with no problem. Throughout the days from April 25-28, she would text me from the number (813) 578-5647 to ask me if I saw any changes to my accounts. When I said no, she called me from the number (813) 578-5647 and asked that I share my screen through AnyDesk. I believe they are still wanting to see if money from my Fidelity accounts have hit my bank account.
On the night of April 28, I flew to Los Angeles to stay with a friend. I was relieved I was able to leave Orlando alive. That night, after finally having the chance to speak with someone in person, I realized I was scammed.