Charlotte County resident scammed out of almost $50k after calls from fake FTC agent

CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla. —

A man was arrested in Charlotte County after being accused of attempting to scam a victim out of more than $20,000.

According to an arrest report from the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office, deputies were called to the victim's home regarding a scam in progress. The victim told deputies that she had been the victim of a scam.

The victim told deputies that in April she had received a text claiming to be from Walmart that a purchase had been made on her credit card for $1,000. The victim said that when she called the phone number she was transferred to a person named "Mark Meador," claiming to be from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

The victim said that "Mark" learned she had a Wells Fargo account, and told her that her money was not safe there. He said that she had to remove her money to keep it safe. "Mark" told the victim that the bank employees were committing fraud against her account.

The victim told deputies that on April 10, she had been instructed to place $20,000 in a box and give it to an agent who was to arrive in a light-colored Toyota and provide a "code." After this, the victim was told by "Mark" to remove $30,000 from her account at a different Wells Fargo branch, place it in a box and wait for an agent to pick it up on April 14.

When deputies arrived at the victim's home on Tuesday, the report says, they made a plan to stop the driver from getting away with the $30,000. When the driver arrived at the victim's home, later identified as Jinpan Wu, 35, he was detained.

The victim reportedly told deputies that Wu was the same person that had picked up the $20,000 from her home previously. When deputies questioned Wu, he reportedly told them initially that he was an Uber driver. After more questioning, he reportedly changed his story, claiming that he responded to a Facebook post offering a transportation job.

The report says Wu told deputies that the person who gave him the job would give him the name of the person, the address, the age and how much money would be picked up. After more questioning, Wu reportedly told deputies that he would then open the package, verify the contents and take a photograph of them.

The report says Wu told deputies he had no knowledge of what the money was for and that he never asked the person who gave him the job. He said he believed the people he was taking the money from were buying insurance.

Wu was arrested and is facing charges under the Florida Money Laundering Act for between $20,000 and $100,000 and scheme to defraud, obtaining property of $50,000 or more.

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