WESTLAKE, Ohio — The Westlake Police Department is sending out an alert to residents after an elderly woman was scammed out of $31,000 by fraudsters pretending to be from Publishers Clearing House.
Police say the elderly woman received an unexpected call last month from a man who told her that she had won a "large cash prize" in the Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes. A day later, she was contacted by another alleged PCH representative, who explained that because of the large amount of money she was going to receive, she needed to pay taxes up front.
Over the course of a month, the woman told Westlake police that she made several withdrawals from her bank account that totaled an estimated $31,000. The woman's last payment was sent to a Wells Fargo checking account.
The woman said she realized that her "prize win" was a scam when the last person she spoke with became aggressive and angry on the phone while requesting more money.
Westlake police took a "theft by deception" report and also have reached out to Wells Fargo for account information on the last transaction.
