Woman Loses $3 Million in Snoopy Charm Scam; Police Prevent Further $2 Million Loss

A 68-year-old housewife in Taiwan fell victim to a sophisticated scam, losing NT$3 million after being lured by an online advertisement for a free Snoopy charm. The fraudsters initially requested a mere NT$40 shipping fee, using this to obtain her personal information. They then employed a series of deceptive tactics, including claims of uncompleted real-name verification and potential platform penalties, to coerce the woman into making multiple small transfers totaling NT$3 million.

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The charm is free, just pay NT$40 for shipping.

The scam escalated when the group demanded a further NT$2 million via a counter transaction. On August 12, the woman went to a bank branch to make the transfer, intending to disguise the purpose as "indoor renovation project fees." However, alert bank staff noticed discrepancies in her story and the transaction details, suspecting fraud and contacting the police.

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Buyer has not completed real-name verification.

Upon the police's arrival, the woman remained convinced she was dealing with legitimate sellers, as instructed by the scammers on how to respond to bank inquiries. To break the deception, officers directly answered a call from the scammers and confronted them, revealing their identities. The fraudsters immediately hung up upon realizing their scheme was exposed.

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Transaction order has been locked.

An examination of the woman's phone confirmed the fraudulent nature of the website and the suspicious accounts used for transfers. Although the NT$2 million transfer was prevented, the woman realized she had already lost NT$3 million. The bank is now assisting in efforts to trace and potentially recover the earlier transferred funds.

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Failure to process may result in platform penalties.