Grifters Scammed $28K Out Of East Greenwich Man: Cops

EAST GREENWICH, RI — Grifters posing as employees of the Federal Trade Commission bilked an East Greenwich man out of $28,000, police said.

An officer met with the 68-year-old man at his Clemente Drive home Wednesday and learned he had been "contacted by Apple Pay regarding his debit card information" shortly after noon Aug. 4, according to a police report.

The caller "stated that he works for the 'Federal Trade Commission' and would like (the man) to invest in an escrow account," the report said.

The supposed FTC employee then told the man to go to his bank and withdraw $20,000, telling bank representatives the money was for "construction at his residence," according to police.

Once he withdrew the money, the man was told to place it in a UPS shipping box, which he did, the report said.

Then, about 8:30 p.m., a "male of Chinese descent who spoke broken English arrived at his residence and took the box with the money," police said.

The next day, the same person instructed the man to withdraw $6,000 and to tell bank representatives it was for surgery, according to the report.

The man "also "invested" $2,000 into bitcoin through the same party," the report said.