'Amazon Scam' Claims Another Hackettstown Victim: Police

HACKETTSTOWN, NJ - A 74-year-old Hackettstown woman was scammed by someone claiming to be Amazon, according to the Hackettstown Police Department.

The 74-year-old woman received an email, which she believed to be from Amazon, in reference to possible fraud on her account. The victim called the phone number provided (1-833-392-5331) and they stated that she needed to purchase a sim card to correct the problem. The victim’s 76-year-old husband, while on the phone with the scammer, went to different stores to purchase gift cards and read the numbers to the scammer.

The wife attempted to call her husband to stop because she realized something was wrong, but the scammer wouldn’t allow him to hang up the phone. The victim purchased $9,000 worth of gift cards.

During the overnight hours the couple received numerous phone calls from 253-387-5543, police said.

"Remember: Gift cards are for gifts, not for payments," police said. "If someone calls with urgent
news or a convincing story and then pressures you to pay them by buying a gift card and then giving them the codes on the back of the card – stop. It’s a scam."

Report scams by filing a complaint at ftc.gov/complaint. Be sure to include:

• Date and time of the call
• Name of the agency the imposter used
• What they tell you, including the amount of money and the payment method they ask for
• Phone number of the caller; although scammers may use technology to create a fake number or spoof a real one, law enforcement agents may be able to track that number to identify the caller
• Any other details from the call

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