Bank staff and police officers in Quang Tri Province, north-central Vietnam help a woman avoid falling victim to an online scam involving a promised overseas money transfer worth US$50,000. Photo: T.G.
A representative of Saigon - Hanoi Commercial Joint Stock Bank’s Dong Ha branch in the province confirmed on Saturday that staff had successfully intervened in a suspected fraud case in coordination with ward police.
Under the scheme, the victim was persuaded to pay an upfront ‘processing fee’ in order to receive a large sum of money from abroad.
The incident began on Thursday morning, when a woman visited the bank seeking guidance on how to receive $50,000 reportedly sent by a relative overseas.
During her consultation, she revealed that she had been instructed to transfer VND5 million ($190) as a fee before the funds could be released.
The detail immediately raised red flags for Tran Thi Ha, a bank employee at the branch.
Ha explained the legitimate procedures for receiving international transfers and warned the customer about the risks.
She advised the woman not to proceed with any payment.
Despite the warning, the customer returned to the bank in the afternoon in a distressed state.
Under pressure from persistent calls and promises made by individuals on social media, she had already sold gold to gather the money needed for the transfer fee.
Faced with the urgency of the situation, Ha and branch leaders continued their efforts to dissuade the woman while contacting Dong Ha ward police for assistance.
Police officers arrived shortly afterward and quickly confirmed that the demand for a fee in exchange for receiving money was fraudulent.
Their intervention ultimately prevented the woman from suffering further financial loss.
The woman had previously lost VND100 million ($3,800) in a similar scam.
Max: 1500 characters
There are no comments yet. Be the first to comment.