New 'Pig Butchering' Scam Targets North Jersey Residents, Prosecutors Say

NORTH JERSEY — Another day, another scam. Prosecutors alerted North Jersey residents on Monday that fraudsters have been conning them with a "pig butchering" scam — and it's not about ham.

"Scammers have a new way to take your money," the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office posted on social media on Monday. "Don’t let one text fool you. The BCPONJ Financial Crimes Unit has seen an uptick in pig butchering scams in Bergen County."

What's a "pig butchering" scam?

It's a type of fraud in which the con artists "build trust, fattening you up with charming conversation," according to Assistant Prosecutor Craig Becker.

In a minute-long video created by the Prosecutor's Office, Becker explains that the schemers make the victim believe he's going to become wealthy, like fattening up a pig.

The scammers usually entice victims to invest money in cryptocurrency.

"Then," Becker says, "they slaughter your life savings."

Once a victim invests money, the scammer disappears and can't be found.

"Don't let a connection cloud your judgment," Becker said. "If an on-line stranger mentions crypto, it's a scam. If it sounds too good to be true, it is."

He said the Financial Crimes Unit is hard at work tracking the fraudsters, shutting down their websites, and hoping to bring them to justice.

There are various types of "pig butchering" scams, according to the federal government. They slowly play on the investor's emotions and hopes.

"It is a type of confidence and investment fraud in which the victim is gradually lured into making increasing monetary contributions, generally in the form of cryptocurrency," says the Office of Inspector General's website, "to a seemingly sound investment before the scammer disappears with the contributed monies."

If you are a victim of a scam, Becker said, contact your local police department. More information about that is here.

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