Recently, a family of three in the Bensonhurst Chinese community fell victim to a “pig slaughter” scam and had no choice but to seek help from City Councilmember Zhuang Wenyi. The mother of the victims, Aunt Wang (pseudonym), had hired a home caregiver to take care of herself. This caregiver gradually became familiar with their family situation and introduced a “great man” to her daughter Xiao Wang (pseudonym). However, this matchmaking turned out to be a scam, and Xiao Wang was swindled out of over $100,000 in just one and a half months.
According to Aunt Wang’s account, a caregiver from a nursing company had been taking care of her since January 2023. By April of this year, the caregiver suggested introducing a Chinese man from California to her daughter Xiao Wang. The caregiver described Xiao Wang as simple and kind-hearted, still single at an older age without a partner. The man in question was an investment immigrant in his thirties whose wife had tragically passed away in a car accident, leaving his daughter and mother behind in China. The caregiver portrayed this man as “very good” and handed Xiao Wang his photo and WeChat QR code in hopes of playing cupid for them.
Subsequently, the man added Xiao Wang on WeChat under the pretext of making friends. Xiao Wang mentioned that the man quickly won her sympathy by sharing details about his daughter and past experiences, creating an impression of him being “quite sincere.”
Not long into their emotional exchanges, the man proposed an “investment opportunity” within just two weeks, claiming to have experience and offering to invest together with Xiao Wang. Despite never meeting in person, the man claimed to have a swift investment platform where she could hand over cash to him through certain individuals.
Xiao Wang stated that different individuals, all Mandarin-speaking Chinese men, would come near her home to collect cash each time. Each collector was different, with the man providing a New York phone number starting with 646 once and saying that “Little Li” (pseudonym) would contact her through that number to arrange money pick up. Next time, he gave her a number starting with 718, saying that this time “Little Zhang” (pseudonym) would contact her to schedule the meeting.
The man recommended an investment platform named “BigBay.com” for Xiao Wang to download the app and open an account. During the process, Xiao Wang had to upload a valid ID. Once the “application was approved,” she engaged in investment transactions through this fraudulent platform.
Initially hesitant, Xiao Wang made a small investment of a few thousand dollars. Seeing profits displayed on the platform and with the man advising her that “the investment opportunity is better now,” she invested $50,000 the second time. In just one and a half months, Xiao Wang had invested over $100,000.
When she tried to withdraw the funds, she discovered she couldn’t and realized she had fallen victim to a scam. In early June, when she expressed concerns, the man repeatedly assured her that “the money was safe and could definitely be withdrawn.” However, by July, after some threats and intimidation, he disappeared, and the BigBay platform and the so-called app were inaccessible.
Around the time of the fraud, the caregiver took leave in early May under the pretext of “visiting China” and stayed there for over a month. Upon returning to the US, she no longer answered the victims’ calls. Aunt Wang tried to inquire about how the caregiver obtained the man’s photo and QR code but got no answers and remained ignorant of the caregiver’s personal circumstances.
Aunt Wang then attempted to negotiate with the nursing company, which stated they were only responsible for health and safety during caregiving, and matchmaking was not within their scope of responsibility. They advised her to report to the authorities and pledged assistance with the investigation.
Upon realizing she had been scammed, Xiao Wang went through prolonged psychological turmoil, blaming herself for making foolish decisions due to excessive trust in others. She tearfully mentioned that she usually ignored scam messages and believed that since the caregiver had provided over a year of physical therapy for her mother, she should be well aware of their family situation, thinking, “so I thought she wouldn’t harm me.”
Although initially reluctant to report the fraud and believing that reporting wouldn’t recover her losses, Xiao Wang eventually mustered the courage to file a report due to her mother’s insistence. However, the police rejected the case as her transfers were deemed “voluntary” and suggested resolving the issue through civil litigation. Nonetheless, Aunt Wang persevered and eventually sought help from Councilmember Zhuang Wenyi, even though her family was outside Zhuang Wenyi’s district.
Officer Eduard Nogol from the 62nd Precinct visited Councilmember Zhuang’s office yesterday and consulted with the family of the three victims, arranging for them to assist further in the police investigation.
It is worth noting that the victim initially communicated with the fraudster on WeChat but later switched to WhatsApp. Councilmember Zhuang Wenyi cautioned the community that fraudsters often shift to WhatsApp for contact, and the platform’s encryption makes it difficult for authorities to track, a common sign of fraudulent activities. She also mentioned a friend who lost $240,000 in a similar manner.
Councilmember Zhuang urged the Chinese community to remain vigilant and engage in community activities, prioritizing offline interactions to reduce risks in the virtual world and provide safer opportunities for socializing and making friends.