October 26, 2025
Homebuyer Loses $112,000 In Wire Fraud Scam
BENSON – A Johnston County homebuyer recently lost $112,000. It happened after an email account was hacked.
The victim was in the process of buying a house in the Benson area. They had been emailing the real estate closing attorney about the home purchase and discussing how to wire funds.
Somehow, one of the email accounts was hacked. The unsuspecting victim was tricked into wiring the funds to a different bank account.
Authorities urge anyone wiring money to verify the wiring instructions independent of the email by contacting the title company or real estate attorney through a phone number you have verified.
The wire fraud scheme has been on the increase in recent years. If you suspect you have been the target of wire fraud contact your nearest law enforcement agency and the Federal Trade Commission at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/
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5 Comments
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Better yet, don’t “wire” any money.
Exactly!!!! If I’m buy a house I am going to hand someone the funds and get a PAPER receipt!!!
SMH!!
@Jonathan & @Stupid You haven’t purchased a house in NC in the last 15 years, have you? Closing attorney requires wire transfers.
We were required to wire the money when we bought our last 3 homes.
Unfortunately, when you buy a home the closing attorney requires you to wire the money. I am not sure if this is a NC thing, but it is odd that these attorneys won’t take checks over 10K