A new scam is plaguing the region — and it starts with a plea for help.
Suspects are approaching people to ask for help in parking lots in hopes of getting their hands on the victim's phone, police say, and then their funds.
Court records outline how police have taken reports of this crime at several locations around the city of Virginia Beach.
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One recent instance occurred in a Food Lion parking lot on Ferrell Parkway. Another case took place at a 7-Eleven parking lot off Indian River Road and a third case happened at Lake Placid Park.
Virginia Beach Police said they’ve had more than 70 reports of this crime this year in Virginia Beach and they say it is a problem throughout Hampton Roads.
“It always happens to good people who have a good heart who are willing to help out their fellow citizens and then they're taken advantage of,” said Richard James, Former Detective and Crime Analyst.
The crime sounds a little complex, but can happen in a matter of minutes, especially when suspects know exactly what they are looking for on your phone.
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Police say generally, suspects approach victims and make up a story about needing help. They say they lost their wallet or may be locked out of their bank account and need some money.
Police say the criminal will ask the victim if they bank with a specific bank and if the victim says yes, they will ask if they can do a member-to-member transfer.
Authorities say generally, victims will open their bank app and hand their phone over to the suspect for the suspect to enter their banking info for the member-to-member transfer. Then, the suspect quickly applies for a personal loan on the victim's phone, authorities explained.
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Police say the loan amount is usually for $5,000 to $7,000.
They say the suspect will then say they accidentally sent the victim too much money and show the victim their account that will have extra money in the account.
They say the victim, not realizing this money is from a personal loan, will then Cash App, wire, or take cash out and give it to the suspect.
The criminals then leave and the victims do not realize what happened until later in the day or the next day.
Police encourage people to use caution when they are approached by someone asking for a favor involving their phone. They're advising people to treat your phone like it is your wallet and never hand it over to a stranger.
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“Those people who want to commit fraud are always looking for the lowest-hanging fruit, the person who they believe is going to give them the least amount of resistance that's unaware of the fraud,” said James.
Police said if someone approaches you in public asking for a favor like this, decline politely, move away from the person, and report suspicious behavior to authorities.
Police say there are multiple suspects in the various cases throughout the city and they say some victims may not have come forward.
