Clallam County residents are continuing to lose significant sums of money to scammers who falsely claim to be working as “agents” for the FTC.
FILE - A Clallam County Sheriff’s Office vehicle parked at the scene of a deadly police shooting outside of a bank in downtown Port Angeles on Friday, May 3, 2024. Clallam County residents are continuing to lose significant sums of money to scammers who falsely claim to be working as “agents” for the Federal Trade Commission, according to the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators say the scams are highly sophisticated and ongoing, with more than $1 million stolen from residents on the Olympic Peninsula. Authorities emphasized that the Federal Trade Commission does not have “agents,” a key red flag in the schemes. A recent case from 2025 highlights how the scams work. An elderly Clallam County resident lost $28,000 after being contacted by suspects posing as FTC agents. The scammers instructed the victim to buy a prepaid TracFone, keep it powered on at all times and stay on the line while they guided him through the fraud. The suspects then directed the victim to withdraw cash and hand it over to a person who came to his home and accepted the money without speaking. While still on the phone, the victim was persuaded to provide account passwords, including access to his bank accounts. During one attempted withdrawal, the victim’s bank warned him that the transaction appeared to be a scam. Investigators say the scammers were actively listening to that conversation and continued giving instructions. The bank ultimately flagged the account, preventing the suspects from electronically withdrawing an additional $200,000 through an offshore account. The case remains under investigation. The sheriff’s office said similar cases have led to multi-agency investigations, arrests, and the identification of additional victims across Washington and other states, underscoring that the crime is not isolated to Clallam County. Federal data shows the problem is growing. According to FTC statistics, older adults reported $2.4 billion in fraud losses in 2024, up sharply from $600 million in 2020. Authorities are urging residents — especially seniors — to be cautious of unexpected calls claiming to be from government agencies or large companies. Government agencies will never demand payment in cash, gift cards, cryptocurrency or gold, officials said, and will not ask for passwords or direct people to buy prepaid phones.Anyone who believes they are being targeted by a scam is urged to immediately stop contact and call Clallam County law enforcement’s non-emergency line at 360-417-2459, option 1.Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s daughter urged abolishing the TSA after a 15-minute airport security delay, saying she barely made her flight.New flood warnings have been issued for the Cedar and White rivers in south King County, with the Cedar River expected to overflow its banks Friday.For many U.S. military members, being home for the holidays is not an option.Coury’s 12-year-old son, Gabriel, was riding a scooter near their home in Kent in July 2023 when a drunk driver fatally struck him.
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