(EDITOR\u2019S NOTE: Part two of The Daily Herald\u2019s local scam coverage looks at one reporter\u2019s experience with the suspect Liberty Savings Bank, plus more comments from Dan Tanner, a victim from McAlevys Fort.)
\n\u2018My name is also Paul Walker\u2019
\nCurious to test the wits of these \u201cfraudsters\u201d who use the northern border like a safety net to prey on vulnerable people, this reporter posed as a loan-seeking college graduate in the market for a new car, and called a phone number for the suspect Liberty Savings Bank that was provided by Dan Tanner, 27, a victim from McAlevys Fort.
\nHeeding \u201cparental advice,\u201d I asked the \u201cfraudster,\u201d a friendly woman with an unfamiliar accent, to explain the loan procedure at her Liberty Savings Bank before moving on with any sort of loan application.
\nWith utter avoidance, she asked, \u201cSir, where are you calling from?\u201d
\nI chose not to lie \u2014 \u201cHuntingdon, Pennsylvania.\u201d
\nShe must have been the same woman who ignored earlier calls from a phone at The Daily News, which is The Daily Herald\u2019s sister paper. Journalists mean trouble for scam artists. At least they are smart enough to use caller ID.
\n\u201cSir, I\u2019m sorry, but this is the Toronto office. You will have to call your local representative.\u201d
\nFood for thought: How many Delaware banks have a Toronto office?
\n\u201cAnd what is that number?\u201d
\n\u201c866-205-7328.\u201d The number listed in the alleged false advertisement that ran in both The Daily News and The Daily Herald and lured Tanner.
\nBefore closing the conversation, the woman added, \u201cWhen clients refer our services, they can receive 10 percent off monthly payments, so tell the people at the other office your friend\u2019s name who referred you.\u201d But a referral was never mentioned. Tricky how they scam to the last breath.
\nIn the same unfamiliar accent, my local representative, a man, answered the phone with gimmick lines more rehearsed than my own \u2014 \u201cWe offer personal loans, home loans, mortgage loans, business loans, refinances. Our interest rates are from four to nine percent, and you must be over 18 years old with some form of income, whether it\u2019s disability, social assistance or unemployment.\u201d
\n\u201cBut first, the loan procedure,\u201d I said.
\n\u201cI need your information. It will help me keep track of your application process.\u201d
\nThe loan procedure first.
\n\u201cI\u2019m sorry, sir. I\u2019ll need your information to go further.\u201d Apparently, fraudsters do not waste time on cautious people.
\nForeseeing a dead-end, I asked for his name.
\n\u201cPaul Walker,\u201d he said. Paul Walker \u2014 how very unthreatening, common, American \u2014 and dishonest. Personal judgment said his accent was not that of a man named Paul Walker.
\nLike a friend of a friend, the \u201cfraudster\u201d asked for my name in return. Scam artists are smooth, and they will pretend to be interested until they make off with your money.
\n\u201cMy name is also Paul Walker.\u201d
\nInfuriated, he said, \u201cThis is a place of business. We do not have time for your jokes. We are very busy today.\u201d Paranoia is a suggestion of guilt.
\n\u201cI am being as honest with you, sir, as you have been with me,\u201d I said. \u201cNow, please, the loan procedure. I need a new car.\u201d
\nAfter several minutes waiting on hold, I gave up. How quickly two men sharing the same fake name lose interest in each other.
\nTanner speaks to citizens
\nTanner wanted to share his story to warn local people about fraud scams like the one that robbed him.
\n\u201cI\u2019m upset with myself, and I\u2019m upset with the company,\u201d Tanner said.
\n\u201cI\u2019m strapped for money, and I\u2019m upset this company is out there. I talked to the FBI. They know about this scam, yet they never contacted newspapers or TV-10 to get this into the public so people know. That\u2019s why I\u2019m telling my story, so people know. This isn\u2019t easy for me. I don\u2019t want this to happen to anyone else. What better way to shut them down than to inform people so they stop sending money.\u201d
\nNow, Tanner, whose family has been living at his father\u2019s house, is working to compensate for $729 lost.
\n\u201cI have to find another way to get money for the house, or I won\u2019t be able to get it,\u201d he said. \u201cI had taken loans from family and friends to pay bills. I took money set aside to pay for my truck and my car for a month, and that\u2019s what I sent to these people.\u201d
\nThe last time Tanner talked to the alleged fraudsters, they said someone would be in touch to refund money he sent in pre-loan fees.
\nHe does not plan to seek out answers or revenge.
\n\u201cI\u2019m tempted to call them back,\u201d he said. \u201cBut it\u2019ll probably do more harm than good, as upset as I am. It\u2019ll cause more stress than it\u2019s worth.\u201d
\nTanner\u2019s father, Dan Sr., expressed frustration with government officials who \u201care aware of these scams, but don\u2019t do anything to let people know.\u201d
\nThe elder Tanner said he wishes the state department \u201cwould go to Washington and say, \u2018We need to contact Canadian authorities and tell them to cut this off.\u2019\u201d
\n\u201cIf they traced the active phone lines, they could shut this down. They could actually get the people who do this.\u201d
\nCongressman Shuster released a statement stating that there is no federal legislation to govern scams operating across national borders.
\n\u201cIt is terribly unfortunate that innocent people are being taken advantage of,\u201d Shuster said. \u201cIn today\u2019s information age, where people can buy things over the Internet or phone, there needs to be a balance with privacy.\u201d
\nTory Mazolla, Shuster\u2019s spokesperson, said there is federal legislation pending in the Commerce Committee against \u201cphishing,\u201d a method used by identity thieves to extract personal information from people by sending e-mails that appear to be from legitimate companies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
(EDITOR\u2019S NOTE: Part two of The Daily Herald\u2019s local scam coverage looks at one reporter\u2019s experience with the suspect Liberty Savings Bank, plus more comments from Dan Tanner, a victim from McAlevys Fort.) \u2018My name is also Paul Walker\u2019 Curious to test the wits of these \u201cfraudsters\u201d who use the northern border like a safety […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-local-news-in-the-tyrone-pennsylvania-area"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=43279"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43279\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=43279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=43279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=43279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}