A credit card scam caught on tape

This is the season for con artists to come out of the woodwork to rip you off. They do it in person, over the phone, through the mail and on the Internet. <br/><br/>News on 6 crime reporter Lori Fullbright

Monday, December 6th 2004, 12:32 pm

By: News On 6

This is the season for con artists to come out of the woodwork to rip you off. They do it in person, over the phone, through the mail and on the Internet.

News on 6 crime reporter Lori Fullbright says even smart people can fall for these professionals.

A Green Country man recently recorded a scam artist's telephone call and when the FBI said there was nothing they could do, he gave it to me so we can warn you.

Dewayne Boyd plays bass guitar and sings and his dad plays guitar, they've performed western swing together for years. His dad is in three Hall of Fames and at the age of 71, still performs and lives on his own in Kellyville.

He was also the target of a scam artist, one who called about his Sears credit card and told him to wire several hundred dollars through Western Union to a person in Arizona. Dewayne and his dad were suspicious, so they recorded the next call which included elaborate steps, even a script to follow.

Caller: "Step 3, a live person from Western Union will come on the line and ask what you want.â€

Dad: "I'm trying to wire money on my credit card."

Caller: "I want to wire money on my credit card."

Dad: "Okay.â€

Dewayne was none to happy about this scam. His father recently lost his wife and when he believes he owes money, wants to take care of it.

Dewyane Boyd: "Daddy's fully capable of handling his own finances but it's been a traumatic year and I'm just glad he called me before he wired the money."

The caller tells Mr. Boyd to send $420 and exactly how to answer the Western Union questions.

Caller: "Who are you sending it to?"

Dad: "Mike Headrick or Hendricks."

Caller: "That's yesterday; he's out of the office so now, send it to Deborah Brooks."

Caller: "Do you know Miss Brooks?"

Dad: "No."

Caller: "You should say yes, she works at your financial institution."

Father and son are pleased they avoided losing money to these scammers and wanted to warn others to beware.

These scams come in all variations so here are some important things to remember. Never verify your credit card number, banking account number or social security number over the phone, no matter what story they give you. If you have a refund coming or win a trip or any other prize, you'll never have to pay any money to get it, not a dime. Give to charities you choose, not the ones that call by phone, since you can't make sure they're honest. And, don't hire people who come to your door and offer to do home repairs.

The FBI said it didn't have the resources to track down this scam because there is just so many this time of year.