Computer scam takes thousands from Colleton woman
By Heather Ruppe
A Colleton County woman claims to have been scammed out of $24,000 for scrubbing child porn off of her computer.
The ordeal began when the woman’s computer was locked. She was then prompted to call a number that appeared to be associated with Microsoft.
After calling the number, the woman spoke to an unidentified man, who claimed to be a Microsoft engineer. The man told the woman she had child porn on her computer, and that she was going to be investigated by the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office. The man also said this agency would be issuing warrants for her arrest. The man then offered to clean her computer for her, but would need money for the service. At this point, the woman gave the male suspect access to her bank.
According to a sheriff’s office incident report, the woman gave the man $24,5000 and a copy of her driver’s license. The money was deposited to a bank in St. George.
The man contacted the woman three more times, asking for additional money or gift cards.
At this point, the victim contacted the sheriff’s office, who responded to her home on May 14th.
This case is under investigation.
In other Colleton County crime news:
Woman caught with drugs
A 46-year-old Walterboro woman was found with multiple illegal pills during a recent routine traffic stop. According to a Walterboro Police Department incident report, an officer stopped the woman on Sniders Highway on May 3rd because her vehicle had a broken tail light. A K9 with an officer at this traffic stop alerted the officer to the possibility of drugs in the car, giving a positive “alert” to the driver door. The officer then found 11 oxy pills. The woman was charged and taken to jail.
Hotel parking lot crime
Officers on routine business checks at a Walterboro hotel discovered a crime. According to a Walterboro Police Department incident report, officers who were patrolling the parking lot of the Holiday Inn on Sniders Highway in Walterboro discovered that several trucks were “rummaged through,” the report states. The trucks belong to Santee Cooper. More than $2,000 in tools were stolen from these trucks, including chain saws, drills and batteries. The case is under investigation.
Shots fired at Walterboro house
Officers were called to a house in Walterboro on May 6th to a report of shots fired.
According to a Walterboro Police Department incident report, officers arrived to the Francis Street residence and arrested a 26-year-old man on several charges, including possession of a firearm with altered or obliterated serial number, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and discharging a firearm within city limits.
Officers on scene found two spent .40-caliber shell casings. The man also had 21.1 grams of marijuana and is charged with possession of marijuana.
