Cryptocurrency-related scam victim goes after wrong person in Denver, traumatizes family

DENVER — A current rip-off resulted in solely $150 in losses for one Denver household, however the repercussions left them traumatized.

On Thursday night, a 20-year-old man in all black clothes and a purple bandanna over his face was armed with two handguns, in keeping with the Denver Police Division, when he confirmed as much as a Denver dwelling searching for an individual named Jessica.

“Does Jessica dwell right here?” a person is heard shouting on a house safety system at a 13-year-old resident, standing exterior the house.

The teenager’s mom would finally come exterior and study that the person, recognized as Omar Vargas, was trying to find her relative Jessica as a result of he believed she scammed him of his cash.

Vargas was arrested by Denver police shortly after and was charged with felony menacing with a weapon.

Denver7 spoke with Jessica Otero Garcia to study why a person who she says she’s by no means met would threaten her household at a house she hasn’t lived in for years.

“He may have harm my aunt, he may have harm my cousin, he may have shot considered one of them,” she mentioned as tears streamed down her face. “I actually by no means thought that it might come to one thing so huge that I’ve to mainly be frightened of my very own life.”

Again in November, Garcia noticed a publish on Fb from somebody posing to be a pal she knew in center college.

The publish mentioned one thing alongside the strains of, “I am right here freely giving cash to teen mothers to assist them out.”

Garcia, a younger mother herself, was cautious, however reached out anyway, pondering it was really her pal. The scammer even confirmed Garcia a drivers license ID of her so-called pal to construct belief.

Garcia was instructed to deposit cash into Money App, buy Bitcoin with the money, and ship it to a different account. Money App permits for the alternate of cash or cryptocurrency from one person to a different.

She was promised a return of her cash plus way more, however by no means noticed any of it.

“So I am like, ‘OK, I simply acquired scammed for $150.’ I used to be like, ‘That is positive. No matter.’”

However she was fooled once more.

Garcia then obtained a message from what gave the impression to be Fb, although it wasn’t, asking her to offer her e mail, cellphone quantity, and finally a photograph of her driver’s license. Shortly after doing so, she was locked out of her account.

“Then, the subsequent day, I began getting messages from my household like, ‘Hey, why are you posting this?’ And I used to be like, ‘What are you guys speaking about?’ (They mentioned), ‘No, you are posting that you just’re freely giving cash,’” Garcia mentioned.

The scammer was utilizing her profile to go after others.

Numerous requests to Fb to deactivate the account have been unsuccessful.

Then Thursday got here round.

“They’re traumatized. My household is traumatized and we do not understand how we’re gonna get by this,” Garcia mentioned.

In response to Garcia, police discovered why the suspect ended up at her home.

Police mentioned “‘the whole lot is smart. (Vargas) mentioned that you just had scammed him and that you just owed him cash,’” Garcia mentioned.

Garcia mentioned she believes the scammers who took management of her account despatched her drivers license to Vargas as a method to construct belief for a rip-off, which confirmed her earlier handle — therefore why he confirmed as much as her household’s dwelling.

In response to police, Vargas is being charged with felony menacing with a weapon.

Bringing the scammers to justice however is a harder bout. It is one which’s often fought over giant areas, and even abroad, however one which got here too shut for one Denver household.