Hackers posing as representatives at Amazon and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have scammed an elderly Nebraska couple out of $250,000 in a prolonged fraud scheme that began with a simple email.
Authorities say the 82 and 84-year-old victims received an email claiming there was an issue with an Amazon delivery and that they owed $200,000.
They were instructed there would be no interest if immediate payments were made, prompting them to send funds via Bitcoin, Western Union, and Apple gift cards over several months, 1011Now reports.
Scammers escalated the ruse by impersonating FBI agents and asserting there was a “mole” at their bank, instructing the couple not to contact their financial institution while also gaining remote access to their computer to further exploit their accounts.
The scheme resulted in repeated transfers totaling a quarter of a million dollars before authorities were notified in December of 2025.
The sheriff’s office noted that due to the nature of crypto and remote transfers, recovering the lost funds will be extraordinarily difficult once the money has been sent, particularly when significant time has passed before reporting the fraud.
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