Scammers Struck Westfield Residents Last Week, Police Say

WESTFIELD, NJ — A Westfield resident is out $10,000 after answering a phone call from someone pretending to be a representative from the fraud department at his financial institution, police said Tuesday.

The incident was reported on June 26, police said.

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While speaking with the suspect or suspects, the resident granted them remote access to his computer, police said. After several phone conversations, the suspect/s instructed the resident to withdraw $24,000 from his bank account, police said.

The suspect/s then directed the resident to purchase $10,000 of Bitcoin and deposit it at a designated ATM machine, police said.

“Once the $10,000 deposit was made, the resident realized that he was being scammed and reported this incident to the police,” police said.

In another incident reported June 26, a Westfield resident bought a motorcycle through social media that turned out to be stolen, police said.

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“The victim stated he located a social media advertisement for sale of a motorcycle,” police said. “After contacting the owner, the victim agreed on a sale price and a pickup location. Sometime after the transaction was finalized, the victim learned that the motorcycle which he purchased was stolen.”

Police seized the stolen motorcycle and will return it to its rightful owner, police said.

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