Shelton Man Loses Life Savings To Online Crypto Investment Scam

Written By Matt McFarland, WFSB 3 Staff

SHELTON, Conn. (WFSB) - A Shelton man who lost his life savings to an online investment scam is sharing his story to warn others.

Joe Allen said he lost every penny he owned from his 401K, IRA and other investments after wiring money to scammers.

“When I tell you everything, my entire 401K, my entire IRA, my investment accounts from my divorce. Every penny I own has been wired away,” Joe explained.

The former physical therapist said it all started with a text message in August.

A fraud company calling itself ZAP Solutions offered up a work from home crypto investment opportunity. Joe would give them $30,000 with the promise of making $368,000.

“I just kept getting lead further and further down this rabbit hole of having to wire money for this short term investment that never panned out to be anything,” Joe said.

When he was locked out of his account, the scammers demanded more money to get back in. Joe’s total loss reached $228,000.

>>>Watch the WFSB 3 TV video report here on this story.

Joe’s mother says she wasn’t aware of the scam until it was too late.

“I was shocked when he told us. In the beginning, it was $30,000. I said, ‘It’s only $30,000?’ And then he let us know about everything. He showed us the screenshots, the text messages. He said, ‘I emptied out my 401K and my IRA,’” said Carol Allen.

“If it seems too good to be true, it probably is,” Joe said.

Joe’s family met with Shelton police yesterday to file a report and also reached out to the FBI this week. They are trying to get the word out before anyone else is scammed.

As for getting any of that money back, Joe’s mother said police told them not to count on it.

“They told me there’s no way to recover it. People get taken when they’re a their lowest, and they think there’s an opportunity out there. These cyber stalkers find ways of washing the money so quickly,” Carol said.

According to the FBI, cyber criminals have scammed folks out of more than 50 billion dollars during a five year window from 2020 to 2024.

Joe’s family says they’re thinking of starting a GoFundMe.

(This story was reported and written by WFSB 3 TV staff and was posted on Patch.com with full permission. Read more at WFSB.)