ROCHESTER, Minn. – Con artists scammed a Rochester woman out of $3,400 over the phone by by passing themselves off first as from Social Security and then as police. Later, when the woman reported the scam to police, she explained that someone claiming to be from the Social Security Administration called her and said her Social Security number had been compromised. The caller said the woman would be contacted by the Rochester Police Department and then asked her for the police phone number. She gave the number and, what do you know, she got a call from someone claiming to be from Rochester police. It showed RPD on her caller ID. The supposed police officer gave her the names of two other officers, also fake, it turned out. The message: Police were going to freeze the woman’s bank account and issue her a new account and Social Security number. Then, the woman said, the caller told her to transfer money from her bank account into a cash app while waiting for other details to be straightened out. She did. The caller gave the woman a new debit card number to which she could transfer money. Once the woman realized she was being duped, she stopped some money transfers but not until $3,400 was gone.
