MONROE, CT — A text from someone claiming to be from Coinbase Support led to a local man being defrauded out of close to $75,000 in an online scam, according to a police complaint filed Saturday.
The victim told police the text informed him of a secure login code, recommended he call Coinbase Support and gave him a phone number.
When he contacted what he thought was Coinbase Support, he was told his digital wallet had been compromised and his funds were being directed to Spain.
During the conversation, he was told they also noticed activity on his account in Singapore.
The Monroe man was skeptical over whether the person he was speaking to was actually from Coinbase Support and asked for proof. But the person responded with an email with information assuaging him of his concerns.
The victim was told they set up a new digital wallet for him. Then he transferred his funds into the new wallet in an amount totaling between $74,000 and $75,000, according to police.
When the resident went into the wallet a while later to check on the funds, the money was gone, police said.
He was advised to go online and make a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov.
The information submitted to IC3, “combined with other data, allows the FBI to investigate reported crimes, track trends and threats and, in some cases, even freeze stolen funds,” according to the website.
DUI, narcotics possession, 7 warrants
A 24-year-old Trumbull woman found passed out in the driver’s seat of a blue Range Rover with the engine running at the intersection of Jackson Drive and Cedar Lane Sunday night, was charged with DUI and narcotics possession.
Officers responding to the call at approximately 5:09 p.m. also learned she had seven failure to appear in court warrants from police departments in Fairfield, Bridgeport, Trumbull and Shelton.
The bond for those warrants totaled over $300,000, according to police.
Monroe officers at the scene eventually managed to wake the woman up, then noticed her eyes were bloodshot and glossy and her pupils were pinpoint, police said.
When officers told her to shut off the engine and hand over the key fob, she allegedly tried to restart the car before being told to exit the vehicle.
When she got out of the driver’s seat, officers noticed a white powder-like substance on the seat and her person, according to police, who said officers later learned it was fentanyl.
The woman allegedly gave officers a false name and date of birth during questioning.
Shelton Emergency Medical Service personnel arrived on the scene to evaluate the driver, but police said she declined medical attention.
She was asked to participate in field sobriety tests, which were not performed to standard, police said.
Monroe officers charged her with DUI and driving without a license and bond was set at $500.
Police also charged her with interfering with an officer, possession of narcotics and possession of drug paraphernalia. Those charges carried a bond of $2,500.
Officers took the woman to court on Monday morning.
$5,000 lost in Crypto scam
A Monroe man lost $5,000 in a Cryptocurrency scam, according to a complaint filed on Saturday.
Police said the man received a WhatsApp message from a woman named “Diana” a few months ago and they became friendly, while sharing information about each other.
When he told “Diana” he wanted to learn about Cryptocurrency, she said she has a background in finance and could help. She convinced him to download an app called AZETHIOPRO and to create an account, police said.
He was immediately given a $30 credit just for signing up and “Diana” told him, if he had $10,000 in his account, he would have made $3,000 instead of $30, according to the report.
“Diana” walked him through, step-by-step how to transfer $5,000 from Bitcoin into the AZETHIOPRO account.
He later talked about it with a family member, who thought it might be a scam.
Police said when he tried to log back onto his AZETHIOPRO account, he learned he had been locked out of it and could no longer access the $5,000.
Police said the victim was advised to contact the three major credit bureaus. The case is being investigated by the Monroe Police Detective Division.
Into the woods
A 48-year-old Derby man told officers he was driving his 1996 Honda Accord south on Main Street (Route 25) Saturday night, when he looked down for a second and lost control of his car, struck a guardrail to his right, bounced off it and crossed over both lanes of traffic, before ending up in the woods.
Police said he was not injured, but his Honda was towed due to disabling damage.
He was issued an infraction for failure to drive in the proper lane.
The accident occurred around 9:23 p.m., just south of Brook Street.
