CAMBRIDGE, MASS. (WHDH) - Cambridge police helped stop a woman from getting scammed out of $95,000 earlier this month.
The Cambridge resident, who asked to remain anonymous, wired funds to China in early June after a person called her claiming to be a representative with the Chinese government, according to police.
Over the course of the week, the mystery caller coerced the woman to buy an international phone that received multiple calls a day, police said. She was allegedly asked to wire transfer $95,000 to a bank in Hong Kong or face arrest on an international warrant.
Although the woman transferred the money, she contacted Cambridge police after she grew suspicious.
Detectives initially asked her to speak with the local bank where she made the transfer in hopes of stopping the payment, while an off-duty detective contacted an IRS agent assigned to Hong Kong.
The IRS agent worked with police in Hong Kong to freeze the suspect’s account before the bank in Hong Kong opened Monday morning.
All but $80 in bank fees associated with the transfer was returned to the woman’s account.
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