"'I want to let you know there is a warrant out for your arrest.' What?! I've never done anything," said Schmuhl, recalling the initial phone call with a man she came to know as "Andrew Hall."
Hall said he worked for the Department of Homeland Security. He gave a badge number and a warrant case number, telling Schmuhl to call police if she didn't believe him. But if she did call, he said, 'I'd better take my lawyer with me because I'm going to be arrested,' Schmuhl recounted.
The fake federal agent continued to communicate through phone calls, over the Telegram app, and by text. He told the retiree she needed a new Social Security number because she was the victim of identity theft.
"'Before we change your Social Security number, we're going to have to move your money out of your accounts to protect you,'" said Schmuhl, detailing more of Hall's excuses.
When she couldn't convert any more of her cash to Bitcoin, Hall persuaded her to use her credit cards to buy gift cards. The rationale there? That with a new Social Security number, she might have difficulty opening credit cards because of a lack of a credit history. So, she should hit her credit limits now and she'd get the money back later.
Schmuhl wound up spending more than $17,000 on gift cards. Anytime she protested, Hall had an answer.
"'I'm saving you. I'm helping you out,'" she said Hall told her. She thought he was her friend.
Then he didn't answer one day. His phone had been disconnected.
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