Deputy saves 93-year-old’s $600K life savings from gold scam
A 93-year-old Martin County man has recovered his entire $600,000 life savings after nearly falling victim to a gold bar scam, thanks to the quick actions of a Martin County Sheriff’s Office deputy.
MARTIN COUNTY, Fla. —
A 93-year-old Martin County man has recovered his entire $600,000 life savings after nearly falling victim to a gold bar scam, thanks to the quick actions of a Martin County Sheriff’s Office deputy.
According to the police report, the man was contacted by scammers who claimed to be with the Federal Trade Commission and told him his bank account had been compromised. They instructed him to protect his money by withdrawing it and purchasing $600,000 worth of gold.
Deputy Jasmaine McKinney, who has been with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office for about four years, responded to the fraud case last month.
“You can definitely tell he felt like a victim. It was just written all over him,” McKinney told WPBF.
The victim contacted a legitimate gold vendor and wrote a check for $600,000. He then got a call from the scammers informing him someone would come pick it up when he received it. The gold had not yet been shipped when the man began to suspect something was wrong.
He went to his bank, where personnel recognized the situation as potential fraud and contacted the Martin County Sheriff’s Office.
“That was all his life savings. That’s all he had,” McKinney said
McKinney immediately contacted the gold company and explained that the 93-year-old had been scammed. She worked with the victim and the business to stop the transaction and recover the money.
“Let’s get it done, because, again, this guy is out of a lot of money and he’s not a millionaire or anything like that. He’s just a regular guy,” she said.
The gold vendor cooperated with law enforcement, canceled the transaction, and helped ensure the victim received a full refund.
A few weeks later, McKinney received confirmation that all $600,000 had been returned to the victim’s account.
“I really stressed when I asked him, ‘Is it really back in your account? Or is it still pending? What’s going on?’ He said, ‘It’s back in there. I saw it.’ I said, I’m happy for you.’ I just kept saying that. ‘I’m happy for you. I’m happy for you.’ He kept saying, ‘I’m so happy you guys were involved,'” McKinney said.
McKinney said she will never forget seeing the change in the man’s demeanor from the day they first met to the moment she was able to tell him his money had been recovered.
The Martin County Sheriff’s Office is warning residents to never provide personal or financial information over the phone. Officials also encourage anyone who believes they may be the target of a scam to contact law enforcement.
The warning comes as deputies recently responded to another local bank, where they stopped an older man from becoming the victim of another gold bar scam, preventing the loss of $98,000.
Stay up to date: The latest headlines and weather from WPBF 25
Get the latest news updates with the WPBF 25 News app. You can download it here.
Your neighborhood: Local coverage from WPBF 25 News