A Sag Harbor woman reported a scam that defrauded her of more than $200,000 to Sag Harbor Village police — and ultimately the Federal Bureau of Investigation — after a previously unknown individual contacted her on Instagram.
A man, calling himself “David,” reached out to the woman, and after about a month of talking with him, she began putting money into two separate accounts connected to Stock Venture, Coinbase, and Cash App, police said.
The first account accumulated a total of $170,500, while she placed $33,742 in the second. Ultimately, “David” had access to the accounts. Once the money was in her Coinbase account, she would buy Bitcoins, which she then transferred to her Stock Venture account, according to police.
“David” told the woman that she would receive $650,000, but when she went to withdraw the money, she realized it was a scam, a police report said. She then scheduled a meeting with Chase Bank to receive further assistance.
After documenting the incident, Sag Harbor police advised the woman to contact the F.B.I., Cryptocurrency Internet Crime Complaint Center, Cash App, and Coinbase. “David” has since deleted the Instagram account, police said.