Fake Norwood GM Tried To Trick Town Into Wiring Cash

NORWOOD, MA — A quick glance at this email exchange and there's a good chance that you'll miss the fact that it's an attempt at a scam. While it appears at first glance that General Manager Tony Mazzucco is emailing Assistant Town Accountant Linda Lardis about an invoice to process, it is not what it appears to be.

While the name of the email says Mazzucco, the address was not his. The exchange, posted by Mazzucco on Twitter Wednesday, shows someone attempting to take money from the town by pretending to to be the general manager.

"This is what cyber crime looks like. Quick action by great Town of Norwood finance team protected us on this one, no funds lost and these criminals were not successful. Kudos to our finance team. Important to foster a culture where people feel ok to question their supervisors," Mazzucco tweeted.

In the email chain, Lardis received an invoice with orders to wire the money to a "vendor's" account. Mark Good, the town treasurer and collector, realized that the request was never authorized by the selectmen and replied that the "vendor" was unknown to him and the town only wires money for debt service. All other vendors are paid by check.

The fake Mazzucco then wrote, with improper capitalization, that it was essential that the wire transfer take place that day. Fortunately for the town, the transfer never took place.

The catch saved the town from losing thousands of dollars, according to Police Chief William Brooks.

Below are the fake emails and attempt to take money from Norwood:

Image Credit: Dan Libon/Patch