Fraud In Nutley: Bichon Puppies|Job Applications|Artwork

NUTLEY, NJ — Nutley residents continue to report cases of fraud and theft by deception throughout the township, with a wide range of schemes allegedly taking place, authorities say.

According to the Nutley Police Department, the following incidents were recently reported in the township.

JOB APPLICATIONS – (May 23) “The victim stated they applied electronically for several jobs and was contacted by an unknown person claiming to be ‘Mary Wilson.’ Ms. Wilson sent an email stating she represented Locke Farm Center, a subsidiary of Oticon, Inc., which is a NJ-based company that the victim recognized. The actor stated to the victim via email that they got the job and they would receive checks from the company to purchase equipment to start to work from home. Two checks were received in the amounts of $950 and $1,950 from a bank in Alabama. The victim deposited the checks into their account and purchased the equipment requested via email from the actor, Ms. Wilson (an iPhone and office equipment). The items were paid with funds from the victim’s account after having deposited the checks received. The victim became suspicious of the format and began to question Ms. Wilson for more information, such as a direct contact phone number or other corporate information. The victim was told a supervisor would be contacting them. The electronic checks did not clear and the funds promised were not available. The cell phone was not updated with company information or returned to the victim and there has been no further contact from any other alleged representatives. All agencies were contacted regarding the fraudulent activity to the victim’s accounts. A block was put onto the accounts and the phone was deactivated and serial number entered as stolen.”

BICHON PUPPIES – (May 24) “The victim reported to headquarters that they were in conversation with a site catering to Bichon puppies over the course of a couple of days. The party identified themselves as ‘David Nguyen’ and there were several emails sent, including pictures and video of the puppy. A sale/contract for the puppy and a guarantee for delivery of the puppy were exchanged. A payment was requested in the amount of $500 as an electronic bank transfer, which was deposited into the actor’s account. A second electronic deposit was sent as requested and a response was generated that the funds were received. The flight information was received by the victim regarding the dog’s arrival. The victim attempted several times to make contact with ‘David Nguyen’ with negative results. The website was found to be inactive and the phone number provided was not working. Officers attempted to contact Mr. Nguyen with negative results. The victim’s financial institution was contacted and advised of the incident. Copies of all emails and the contract were placed into evidence.”

MACY’S CHARGE – (May 24) “Headquarters received a walk-in report regarding fraud. The victim stated they were made aware of a fraudulent charge in the amount of $2,413 against their checking account for a charge through Macy’s. The bank’s fraud protection department is currently investigating the matter. Two days after the victim reported the incident to the financial institution, they received a phone call from a ‘Laura Langston’ who made reference to the Macy’s purchase, which the victim found unusual. No information was provided to the ‘Ms. Langston.’ A check of the phone number found the number had been associated with similar scams and does appear to match any of the fraud department contact information associated with the bank. The victim is in possession of all of their debit cards and will be checking all of their accounts for any fraudulent activity.”

CREDIT CARD FRAUD – (May 27) “Headquarters received a report of fraud, where the victim stated that their American Express credit card was involved in fraudulent activity. While checking their online bank apps, the victim notices two purchases made this morning: one online Apple purchase worth $457, and the other purchase through Best Buy in the amount of $600. American Express was contacted, they froze the account and processed a refund for both purchases.”

VENMO FRAUD – (May 27) “Headquarters received a report of fraud. The victim stated they received a phone call from someone representing Venmo, who stated that a friend of the victim had fraudulent activity to their account. It was used to take money from a separate account. After an hour of trying to confirm how the transaction was completed, the friend’s account was frozen through Venmo. The ‘representative’ stated that if the victim transferred $2,000 into the friend’s account, Venmo would unfreeze it. The money was transferred and that is when the victim was advised that it was a scam. The financial institution was contacted and advised of the incident. Two separate transactions were showing, with one still pending, and able to be frozen. The other one was already deposited and the account closed.”

ARTWORK PURCHASE – (May 27) “Headquarters received a report of fraud. The victim stated that they were in contact with an eBay buyer, ‘David,’ who was to purchase a piece of artwork for $600. Once the funds were secured, a check was sent to Kikkoman Sales USA for $1,630 and the victim was told to keep the $600 and disburse the balance via Zelle (the cash payment app). The victim felt there was fraudulent activity and did not cash the check. Communication has been blocked from ‘David’ and the check was ripped up after not being able to identify the company it was drawn on.”

SUSPICIOUS LICENSE – (May 28) “An incident of fraud was documented by headquarters. The victim stated that they received a call from a credit union in Connecticut who stated that an unknown actor presented a New Jersey driver’s license to a bank employee in order to withdraw funds from the victim’s account. The picture on the driver's license was different, as well as the issuance date and expiration date. The employee deemed it suspicious, and did not provide the male party with any money. The bank contacted the police department in their jurisdiction but also wanted a police report done in our jurisdiction as well. The victim was advised to monitor their financial accounts/credit bureaus and to contact Nutley PD should anything suspicious have occurred.”

Keep updated with local public safety alerts at the Patch Belleville-Nutley Facebook page. Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com