GATES COUNTY, NC — A scammer stole thousands of dollars from an elderly woman in Gates County, N.C. And while the money is gone, authorities were able to catch the person they say is responsible in a sting operation.
The woman, 83, lost $20,000 in the scam that originated from an email associated with the victim's PayPal account, according to county Sheriff Ray Campbell.
"It had a phone number to call to address the problem," Campbell said. "This individual had an account but had not used it."
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The victim called the number — and that's when the harassment started.
The victim was reportedly told that PayPal overpaid her account and she needed to come up with the money.
"Multiple calls made to this individual putting extreme amount of pressure on them to the point of, she thought the only way I can get out of this is do what they're asking me to do, which is to withdraw cash money," said Campbell.
She took $20,000 from her bank account and brought to the scammer's residence.
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But more money was demanded, the sheriff's office said.
After the original transaction, the woman's family teamed up with the sheriff's office and organized a sting operation to catch 47-year-old Kelly Earley..
Earley is currently being held on a $1 million bond.
After the arrest was posted online, the sheriff's office got reports of other possible victims.
"With the artificial intelligence that's there now, scammers can generate phone numbers, they can generate voices and it's really, really scary," said Campbell. "The sheriff's office phone number can show up on your caller id and we had nothing to do with it."
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Sheriff Campbell is encouraging individuals not to engage with emails of this nature.
"Don't talk to them. Don't make a call. If you get something on your email saying there's a problem and there's a phone number there, do not call it do not engage with these people," said Campbell.
He also recommends keeping tabs on your elderly family members and their bank accounts to make sure a scammer doesn't find a way into their wallet.
