Phishing email leads to Hickman couple losing $250,000

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – A Hickman couple lost $250,000 in a months-long scam that started with a phishing email, the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office says.

Chief Deputy Ben Houchin said Monday that the couple, ages 84 and 82, received a phishing email notifying them that their Amazon account was compromised.

The couple was told they owned $200,000, according to Houchin.

The scammers notified the couple that they wouldn’t charge interest if they started paying immediately.

“Sadly, they did,” Houchin said.

From August to October, the couple sent money to the scammers via bitcoin, Western Union transfers and Apple cards.

Houchin said the couple also gave scammers access to their personal computer, which had their bank account information.

The scammers, who posed as agents with the FBI, told the couple there was a “mole” in the Hickman bank and that they should not contact them.

In total, the couple lost $250,000, according to Houchin.

“There is absolutely no way we will be able to get any of the money back,” he said.

The sheriff’s office wasn’t notified of the scam until Dec. 17.