FBI Norfolk warning residents not to fall victim to “pig butchering” scam

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FBI Norfolk warning residents not to fall victim to “pig butchering” scam

CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) — FBI Norfolk is putting out the warning about a scam called called “pig butchering.”

It has to do with scammers first building trust with a victim and using that trust to clean out bank accounts.

“[The] victim is contacted, usually through an unsolicited text message, email, maybe on social media site, what have you, dating app, and generates a relationship with the scammer,” FBI Special Agent Shanon Newcomb said.

Newcomb explained that’s only the first step. While scammers work to create a bond over a ******* of time, they’ll then start pressuring the victim to invest in cryptocurrency.

He said this stage is called “fattening up the pig,” in which the fraudster is using empathy and trust to further their efforts.

“The scammer provides documentation showing about this great cryptocurrency investment and how this can help you, and the person’s like, ‘OK, great, let me invest this money,’” Newcomb said.

The next and final step is “butchering.” This is when the scammer eventually persuades the victim to put a large amount of money into the fake investment, usually wiping them clean of their assets.

Newcomb explained that, not only is this a problem across the country, but it’s also happening in the Commonwealth.

“We’re number nine in the number of complaints in Virginia,” Newcomb said. “And that is about 1,734 complaints. And unfortunately, we’re also number 10 for losses, and that is about 122 million.”

Newcomb added the best prevention effort is for people to make themselves harder targets.

“Break contact,” Newcomb said. “Stop talking to them and allow yourself time to breathe, think and assess the situation. Does this seem right? Does this seem like a legitimate thing? Why am I investing in cryptocurrency if I have no idea what cryptocurrency is or how it works.”

You can find more information and resources related to preventing

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