202 621 0193
Complaint 229641 Details

A female woman with an accent called me stating she was with the US. Gants Department. She whent on to say that because I lived in a distreed city with no criminal record, pay my bills on time and am not currently in a bankrupcy, I qualify for a $8,00.00 US grant. She stated that she work for the US Gants Department whose sole purpose was to seek individuals that meet this criteria. She went on to say that I have to do nothing including file no paperwork. All I had to do was to promise to spend the money wisely, such as buy a new home, for education, a new car, clothes or food. No drugs or anything illegal. After I promised to do so she said get a pen and piece of paper to write down an approval number and a security number. Which I did. Afterwhich, she asked how would I like to recieve the money by moneygram, amoney order, in my bank account or by check? I said send me a check this is when I became suspicious. She then told me my name, address, city, and state but asked for my zip code. Then she gave me the above call back number to call to comfirm with a supervisor.
After I called back the so called supervisor asked me for a comfiramation number. Instantly a second red flag went up because the other woman said explicidly an approval number. so I gave the supervisor the Approval Number. Then she asked for my Securiy Number. After I gave her those she went on to repeat my name address and zip code. So I guess by then my information was in their system. I would like to point out that whoever is involved in this scam work as a team and I also heard a lot of background noise as in a bunch of fundraiser people talking on the phones background noise. Even with the initial callto me, I heard the same background noise. So the supervisor then stated that I had neen selected to receive a government grant and they she was going to send it to me by check. But first she needed a security deposit of $251.00 but it would be returned in the now $8,251.00 grant check. I told her rather that me sending a security deposit why couldn't she just withold it from the money I was to receive. No she stated that she would need that money before she could release the funds, that was the way they do it. I told her I could not do that and insinuated I was a victim of a similar scram as my reason.
She immediately told me that if I did not want to partipate by sending the processing money that she would withdraw my name from the list of recipients and immediately hung up.
I have been a victim a few month ago and lost $260.00 by sending a Western Union Moneygram to someone in India. By tow people, one stating she was from the US Grants Department and a guy who stated he was from the US Treasury. I believe it is the same group of people doing this. I have a report on file with the East St. Louis Police Department.
Please put this information out before more innocent people are taken advantage of by these con artist.