VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Anna and Nick Glandon, a couple from Virginia Beach, were living in Pittsburgh back in June when they were getting specialized medical treatment for their young son who needed a lung transplant.
This was one of the most difficult times for the family.
They said they got contacted by a scammer who was looking to get money from Anna claiming she missed jury duty.
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Anna got a message on her phone from someone claiming to be Sgt. Tyler from the Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office. The man said he had an urgent matter to speak to her about and left his phone number.
“Immediately, my heart dropped,” said Anna Glandon. "We already had one million things going on with my son being sick in the hospital."
She called the person who claimed to be law enforcement back and said he was polite at first, informing her that she missed jury duty and there was a warrant for her arrest.
She explained their situation.
“He even said, ‘I’m so sorry about your son’ on the phone,” said Anna Glandon.
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She said they were on the phone for almost an hour.
Nick Glandon said the caller had so much of their personal information including their names, address, and the name of a Virginia Beach judge listed on the documents.
But Anna said the more questions she asked, the more aggressive he got on the other end.
He told her she had to go turn herself in at the nearest precinct but then offered her an alternative. He said she could pay a fine and the problem would go away.
While Anna was on the phone, her husband grabbed his phone and called the actual Virginia Beach Police Department who told them to hang up with the scammer.
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Anna said police assured her that no one would ask for money because of missed jury duty.
Anna said he seemed very believable.
The Internet Crime Complaint Center, or IC3, run by the FBI is the nation's central hub for reporting cybercrime.
“We look at trends, we look at intelligence, and try to determine how the threat of these criminal actors is evolving over time,” said Norfolk Assistant Special Agent in Charge Scott Zmudzinski.
In the latest 2023 report, the FBI saw a 10% increase in the number of complaints compared to 2022 with $12.6 billion in losses, which was a 22% increase over the year prior.
The FBI says many scams are coming from overseas.
Anna said even after she hung up the phone, the person kept calling her back.
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“It still scares me to this moment because I thought I was going to jail,” said Anna Glandon. "He made me believe it and even against my better judgment."
She said they are very well aware of scams, but the person was believable, and she thinks this could happen to anyone.
“I hate that there’s people out there like that,” said Nick Glandon. "I wish I could’ve reached through the phone."
The couple eventually lost their young son, but wanted to share their experience to prevent others from being tricked into sending money.
“To do that to people without any care for what they’re going through, just to take a couple hundred bucks from somebody, you got to be a real piece of work,” said Nick Glandon.
“I literally don’t want this to happen to anybody,” said Anna Glandon. "Because it could happen to anybody."
