SCAM ALERT: This Powerball winner wants to give you $4 million in return for a small deposit
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It didn’t take long for scammers to start using the name of Powerball winner Charles W Jackson (pictured) name to grab some quick money.
The June 4 winner won $344.6 million in an NC Education Lottery Powerball game.
That’s when the scamming started in earnest.
In an email by scammers circulating around the UK, it sets out a statement meant to be from the winner, “I have made a donation of $4 million to you as part of what I promise.”
“I had help from several social networking organization including Linkedin and more, in which you have been selected to benefit from my donation.”
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The email then provides links to an article about Jackson’s Powerball win in the Daily Mail and a YouTube video of the press conference in Raleigh where Jackson was introduced.
Jackson chose to receive a lump sum of $223 million, which after state and federal taxes nets him $158 million.
The North Carolina Education State Lottery headquarters at 2728 Capital Blvd, Raleigh. PHOTO: Google
The North Carolina Education Lottery is issuing a scam warning to alert the public about this fake email.
The scammer poses as the jackpot winner and offers to make a $4 million donation to an organization. The scammer then asked for $500 as a minimum deposit in the banking account that would provide the donation to the group.
Scammers on social media are posing as the jackpot winner, using photos of the winner. They then say they are going to give away money to social media followers.
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“Gonna be blessing lucky people with $5,000,” said one impersonator.
Another said: “I’m giving away $100,000 to my first 2k followers $$.”
The North Carolina Education Lottery says unfortunately scams like these are all too common.
“Anyone who makes a promise of a donation or prize, but wants you to give money first, is trying to trick you.”
Charles W Jackson’s lucky ticket was sold at Carlie C's grocery store in Hope Mills, outside Fayetteville.
The Lottery says never give your money or personal information to these people.
They recommend that you protect yourself with the following tips:
Don’t respond to a letter, email, phone call or social media post asking you to send money to get a donation or prize. No legitimate donor or lottery will ever send you this type of communication.
Never give your credit card, Social Security number, driver’s license, passport or bank account numbers over the phone to someone promising you a donation or lottery prize.
As of Thursday, the Lottery has spotted 36 cases of social media impersonators of the jackpot winner. In each case, the lottery reports the fake site to the social media platform.
The lottery also will report the email scam to the Consumer Protection Section of the N.C. Department of Justice.
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HELP: Consumers who believe they have been the victim of a scam or an attempted scam can get assistance from the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Section by calling 1-877-5-NOSCAM or by filing a consumer complaint online at https://www.ncdoj.gov/complaint.
