LEE COUNTY, Ill. — Officials with the Lee County Sheriff's Office in Illinois have issued a warning following a series of scam calls that they say have cost victims thousands of dollars.
In one of the scams, an individual claiming to be from the Federal Trade Commission threatened the victim with arrest if they didn't pay off a debt owed to the United States. The scammer was even able to provide a photo of what they claimed was an ID card from the FTC. The victim eventually withdrew several thousand dollars, which they eventually gave to the scammer in person when the suspect drove their vehicle to the victim's house.
Separately, another victim received a pop-up notification on their computer telling them to call a number with an 877 area code to fix a virus that had infected their system. When the victim called the number, a suspected scammer claimed that their account had been hacked and that they would need to perform a "double transaction" to fix the issue.
The victim was then told to withdraw money from their bank and advise any bank employee that the sudden withdrawal was for costs associated with home improvement. The victim was then told to deposit the money into a Bitcoin ATM at a local business. Throughout all of this process, the scammer remained on the phone with the victim.
Anyone who believes they've been the victim of a scam call is asked to contact the FBI's Chicago Field Office.
Watch more news, weather and sports on News 8's YouTube channel