Cleveland, OH
FBI Cleveland warns shoppers about holiday scams
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The FBI Cleveland Field Office is warning shoppers to watch out for scams this holiday season.
Criminals are trying to steal money and personal information from holiday shoppers.
The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center reported it receives more than 800,000 scam complaints each year, phishing and spoofing being the most common.
Ohio ranked seventh in fraud complaints in 2024. The top scams nationwide in 2024 were:
- Investment scams caused over $6.57 million in total losses (not including cryptocurrency investment fraud losses)
- Business email compromises caused over $2.77 million total losses
- Tech support impersonations caused over $1.46 million total losses
- Personal data breaches caused over $1.45 million total losses
- Non-payments/non-deliveries caused over $785 thousand total losses
Northern Ohio has seen investment scams, tech and government scams and business email fraud most often.
“While it may seem like an uptick during the holidays, the reality is as the volume of shopping transactions increase, so does fraudulent activity,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Greg Nelsen. “Scammers are working every day of the year; there are simply more opportunities during the holidays. Anyone, regardless of their age or how tech-savvy one may be, can become a victim, whether conducting a transaction in person or online, someone with criminal intent will find their next victim.”
Many victims think they’re buying from real online stores but end up giving criminals their credit card information or never receiving items they paid for.
Common holiday scams include fake online shopping deals through phishing emails, non-delivery scams where items never arrive, social media scams offering fake gift cards, fake smartphone apps that steal information, work-from-home scams promising easy money, gift card payment requests and fake charities.
The FBI offers tips to avoid these scams:
- Don’t open suspicious emails or click on unknown links
- Don’t scan QR codes from unsolicited packages
- Use strong, different passwords for banking and credit accounts
- Avoid websites or ads offering unrealistic discounts
- Be careful when downloading mobile apps
- Never wire money directly to sellers. Don’t pay with pre-paid gift cards
- Use a credit card for online shopping and check statements regularly
- Keep all evidence like texts, emails, screenshots and phone numbers when reporting
- If a scammer threatens you or tells you to buy gift cards or gold bars, hang up and call the FBI or police
The FBI reminds residents to apply the idea, “If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.”
If you’re scammed, contact your bank immediately. Also contact local police and file a complaint at www.IC3.gov within 72 hours for the best chance of recovering funds.
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – A woman is dead, and a man is in critical condition after a shooting on the highway early Saturday morning.
Cleveland EMS told 19 News that EMS responded to I-71N and the I-490 split for a reported shooting.
EMS said a woman in her 30s was pronounced dead on the scene.
A man was taken to Metro Health in critical condition.
According to EMS, another woman in her 30s refused transport.
19 News is working to learn more about what led up to the shooting and if any arrests have been made.
This is a developing story. Return to 19 News for updates.
Copyright 2025 WOIO. All rights reserved.
The last time the Buffalo Bills played in Cleveland, they were still raw and hungry, which is way different than the grizzled, yet youth-driven bunch that’ll be heading there for the first time in six years on Sunday.
The Bills were in excellent shape at 6-2 in Week 10 of the 2019 NFL season and rolled into town to face a Browns team that had all the hype before the season, but had lost four straight and were at 2-6.
What happened last time Bills played Browns in Cleveland?
Baker Mayfield and the Browns drove down the field in six plays for a touchdown on the opening drive, with the rival from Josh Allen’s draft class finding Jarvis Landry for the game’s first points. Austin Seibert missed an extra point, and that turned to be critical late in the game.
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Sandwiched around a run-heavy Bills touchdown drive, capped off by an Allen 10-yard scamper that gave them a 7-6 lead in the second quarter, was a very satisfying sequence for Bills fans.
On two of the Browns’ next three possessions following their opening drive, they had the ball inside the Bills’ 3-yard line for 11 plays. Cleveland had eight plays on the first possession, and even though there were a couple of penalties on the Bills, Buffalo had a goal-line stand.
The Bills stopped the Browns on three straight goal-to-go plays on the second such possession, and Cleveland lined up to go for it on 4th-and-goal. However, a false start penalty prompted them to kick a field goal and make it a 9-7 game.
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Buffalo wasn’t as fortunate on the next drive, as Stephen Hauschka shanked a 34-yard field goal wide left with time winding down, leaving the Browns with their lead into halftime.
Out of the locker room, the Bills got an immediate spark. Corey Bojorquez downed a punt at the 7-yard line, then Tremaine Edmunds sacked Mayfield in the end zone for a safety on the next play to tie the game.
The Browns tacked on a field goal on their next drive to take the lead while the Bills’ offense was stuck in quicksand, with three punts and a turnover on downs on their first four second-half possessions.
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Allen got his act together and led a seven-play, 48-yard drive and ran in a score from a yard out to give Buffalo the lead back with 5:26 left. He finished the day 22-of-41 for 266 yards passing and scored twice on the ground, but was off that day.
Mayfield responded in kind, finding Rashard Higgins in the end zone to reclaim the lead after a long drive of his own. The Bills had one more shot, but Hauschka whiffed from 53, handing the Bills a 19-16 loss.
The Bills’ and Browns’ dynamics are much more different than they were in 2019, but there can be that lingering reminder of that game for Allen as the AFC playoff race nears its end.
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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.
Copyright 2025 WOIO. All rights reserved.
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