Phone fraud costs Oxford woman

An Oxford woman reported to police she lost $766.50 in a complicated scam where she thought she was helping a woman on her way here from Michigan to join her church.

The woman told police she received a call from a man identifying himself as “Turner” and saying he was with a bishop in her church.

She then spoke with a man identifying himself as the bishop and telling her a woman was coming to Oxford from Michigan with her two daughters to join the church.

A short time later, a woman identifying herself as the woman coming from Michigan called and said her car broke down at the Michigan/Ohio line and would be delayed.

Then, the local woman received a call from “Turner,” saying the woman needed money to pay for the car repairs and asked if she could help.

She agreed to do so and went to Kroger to send $750 by Western Union, but then got another call saying it did not go through.

She was instructed to send the money by MoneyGram, so she went to Kroger to cancel the first payment and then went to Walmart to send the money.

Later, the victim called a leader in her church to tell him about the problems of the other woman in getting to Oxford and was told of other people who had been called in a similar situation, even using the bishop’s name but that it was a scam.

She returned to Walmart to cancel the payment, but it had already been received, having been collected by someone identifying herself as the daughter of the victim.

Police are continuing to investigate.

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