Cleveland, OH

FBI Cleveland Warns of Holiday Scams During the Shopping Season

Published

1 year ago

December 7, 2024

FBI Cleveland Warns of Holiday Scams During the Shopping Season

[Cleveland, OH] (12-6-24) The FBI Cleveland Field Office is warning the public of common holiday scams during the 2024 shopping season.

With the holidays upon us and seasonal shopping in full gear, criminals are set to look for opportunities to take advantage of consumers. The FBI is encouraging shoppers to be vigilant for scams that are designed to steal their money and personal information.

The two most prevalent holiday scams are non-delivery and non-payment crimes. In Ohio, non-payment or non-delivery totaled over $5.0 million and credit card/check fraud totaled over $6.2 million.

The FBIs definition for Non-Payment/Non-Delivery:
Goods or services are shipped, and payment is never rendered (nonpayment) or payment is sent, and goods or services are never received, or are of lesser quality (non-delivery).

Greg Nelsen, FBI Cleveland Special Agent in Charge

“Criminals don’t take the holidays off. With so many consumers engaged in holiday shopping, whether in person or online, the capacity to target and scam unsuspecting shoppers grows infinitely. More so, scammers capitalize on our trust and have become quite savvy to our shopping habits. The FBI continues to see an uptick in victims who thought they were shopping through a reputable, valid online vendor, only to discover they’ve either provided their financial or credit card information to a nefarious third party or, after waiting weeks for a purchase to arrive, realize they’ve been scammed.

Some of the common holiday scams the FBI warns of are:

Online shopping scams – Scammers offer deals through phishing e-mails or advertisements.
Social media scams – Scammers use social media sites that appear to offer vouchers or gift cards. These scams often lead consumers to complete online surveys designed to steal personal information.
Smartphone app scams – Scammers design mobile apps disguised as free games that steal personal information.
Work-from-home scams – Scammers use websites and social media posts that offer working from home. Convenience is the attention grabber, but there may be fraudulent intentions.
Gift card scams – Victims receive a spoofed e-mail, call, or text asking them to purchase multiple gift cards for person or business reasons.
Charity scams – Criminals set up false charities and profit from individuals who believe they are donating to legitimate organizations.

Scams take many forms, but if a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is. Some precautions:

Do not open any unsolicited emails or click on any links if they do open the email.
Remember to secure banking and credit accounts with strong and different passwords and secure all other accounts that contain anything of value, such as: rewards accounts, online accounts that save payment information, and accounts containing private and personal information.
Steer clear of untrustworthy sites or ads offering items at unrealistic discounts or with special coupons.
Use caution and take a pause to verify when downloading mobile applications.
Consumers should be vigilant when receiving items purchased from online auctions and third-party marketplaces.

If you believe you are victim of a scam, contact your financial institution immediately. You should also contact your local law enforcement agency and file a complaint with the FBIs Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) by visiting www.IC3.gov.

For more information on holiday scams, visit www.fbi.gov/holidayscams.

Source link

Cleveland, OH

Cleveland salt mine works year-round to keep Ohio roads safe

Published

12 hours ago

December 19, 2025

Press Room

Cleveland salt mine works year-round to keep Ohio roads safe

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – Road safety across Ohio begins 1,800 feet below Lake Erie at Cleveland’s Cargill salt mine near Whiskey Island.

19 News made the journey under ground to Cleveland’s Cargill salt time.

Superintendent of production Andrew Staker describes the operation as a “mini-city” where about 250 employees produce the salt that clears our roads and sidewalks.

“We provide over half the salt used here in the state of Ohio. Our salt also goes all over the Great Lakes Region even Virginia,” said Staker.

Thousands of tons of salt pass through this belt, and 500-700 trucks are loaded with salt each day.

Staker said his team works nonstop.

“It’s a big misconception that the mine is only busy during the wintertime,” said Staker. “We prepare in the springtime, so it is full giddy up. We are making salt all year round.”

Just like everyone else, Staker and his time are feeling the effects of winter’s early arrival.

“We take a lot of it snowfall by snowfall, so as demand ramps up, our teams here will put in extra overtime days to be able to meet customer demand,” said Staker.

Source link

Cleveland, OH

Semi-truck rips down power lines in Cleveland’s Ohio City neighborhood for 4th time since July

Published

24 hours ago

December 19, 2025

Press Room

Semi-truck rips down power lines in Cleveland’s Ohio City neighborhood for 4th time since July

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – The city of Cleveland is looking into why wires are dangling from West 25th Street in Ohio City.

Sam McNulty, owner of Nano Brew, says trucks are ripping through wires at the intersection of 25th Street and Bridge Avenue.

“4 times that cable has gone down,” McNulty said. “We’re shocked that whoever is in charge of that cable hasn’t figured out a way to elevate it a little bit more.”

In July, Ring doorbell footage caught a semi hitting the wires. You could see the wires falling to the ground.

Luckily, McNulty said, it’s a communication wire, but that doesn’t make the problem go away.

“This is a very active street tons of pedestrians, bicyclists, families, people are here almost 24 hours a day,” said McNulty.

The most recent incident was Thursday morning. McNulty says a crew wrapped ropes around the fallen wire.

“I am definitely not a line engineer but when I see random rope tied with pretty sketchy looking knots holding the cable up I think that’s probably not Osha approved,” said McNulty.

19 News reached out to the city of Cleveland, which said it is looking into the issue.

Source link

Cleveland, OH

Ohio National Guard members from Cleveland save woman while stationed in D.C.

Published

1 day ago

December 18, 2025

Press Room

Ohio National Guard members from Cleveland save woman while stationed in D.C.

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) -A group of Ohio National Guard members, some from Cleveland, saved a woman’s life last week while on the Joint Task Force D.C. mission in the nation’s capital.

According to officials with the Army, a group of four soldiers from the 323rd Military Police Company, Ohio Army National Guard were on routine patrol when they heard a husband frantically calling for help.

The group of four, including Staff Sgt. Jered Moran, Sgt. James Nelson, Sgt. Jeremiah Slagle and Spc. Gogo Simitcievski, ran about the length of a football field to see if they could help.

Four Ohio National Guard members, some from Cleveland, were honored this week for saving a woman’s life in D.C. while on patrol.(Source: DVIDS JTF-DC)

When they arrived they found an unresponsive 34-year-old woman in the driver’s seat of a car and found she had no pulse and was not breathing.

The team immediately began CPR and rescue breaths in shifts for about six minutes before and ambulance arrived.

“To be on this mission is an honor,” said Moran. “My Soldiers and I are proud Ohioans and are grateful for the opportunity to serve in our nation’s capital by helping others.”

Officials have confirmed the woman was taken to a local hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.

The four men were recognized at a small ceremony this week and continue their mission in D.C.

According to the Army the four, “received a Coin from the D.C. National Guard Senior Enlisted Leader, Command Sergeant Major Ronald L. Smith, recognizing them for lifesaving actions.”

Source link