New York bank transfer scam: people lose tens of thousands of dollars

On January 19, the New York Senate passed legislation to protect people from bank transfer fraud. It obliges banks and electronic transfer services to warn customers before transferring money, reports ABC 7.

Nina Pineda of 7 On Your Side warns that money order scams are a problem that happens more often than you might think. And it can be expensive.

Victoria Baptiste, a retired NYPD officer, wishes she had a badge to find out where the more than half a million money owed to her is being kept.

The money is proceeds from the sale of her family's townhouse in Bushwick: $632 was owed to her after the deal closed.

“The money was transferred by my transaction attorney to my business account,” Baptiste said. “I know that the transfer takes one to two business days, but a week has already passed.”

In her bank's secure message center, she received a message that the bank transfer was "pending."

Baptiste was afraid that the money was missing.

On the subject: New Yorkers are asked to choose tax specialists very carefully: scammers have stepped up ahead of the season

She received another message seven days later, but the funds were still missing. And the status no longer indicated that the transfer was pending.

She began to panic, she needed this money to buy a new property for her family.

Her father Ben has health problems. They survived a fire at their home in Bushwick. And Baptiste made the difficult decision to part with a property full of family memories.

Now that her money is behind her, she can't show proof of funds to buy another home

In reality, banks hold up money transfers to protect customers from rampant wire transfer scams.

“We are talking about millions of millions of dollars that are regularly scammed from people,” explained Deputy New York Senate Leader Michael Gianaris.

That's why the New York Senate passed legislation requiring a warning to appear before making a bank transfer or sending money using the cash app.

“This will warn people not to send their money if they are being offered common scams,” Gianaris said.

This is a step in the right direction, but for bank customers who are not victims of fraud, delays can create problems.

Baptiste used to read Hail Mary to get her money.

“The only thing I could do was pray. And after praying, I heard a voice that said, "7 is on your side." And I thanked Jesus, ”Baptiste shared the revelation.

We contacted the owner of her bank account. And within a few days she received her money.

All $632 was in the bank.

“The money came, and I thought: thank God, thanks to Nina and your team,” Baptiste was delighted.

If you have a large transaction, contact the manager of the local bank branch and let him know what is happening.

Do not deposit a large check through a mobile app or ATM. And remember that any large amounts coming into or out of your account can freeze your account for weeks or even months.