Extremely curious motive

Fake Elon Musk scammed pensioner out of 600,000 dollars

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23.11.2024 11:41

Thinking she was dealing with tech billionaire and Tesla boss Elon Musk, an elderly woman from Texas invested over half a million dollars in the "company" of fraudster Jeffrey Moynihan Jr. whose motive seems extremely curious.

Moynihan had been pretending to be Elon Musk to the elderly woman via Facebook for almost a year until he finally wrapped the 74-year-old woman around his finger.

"He was able to convince her that he was really Elon Musk and kept giving her updates on his life. Until the victim believed that Elon was a good friend," according to the Bradenton Police Department.

Return of 55 million dollars promised
After establishing the basis of trust, the fake Musk recommended that the woman invest in his company. In return, he promised his new online girlfriend from the Texan city of Frisco a return of 55 million dollars. 

According to initial investigations, Moynihan herself had become a victim of fraud and wanted to "recoup" the lost money. (Bild: Bradenton Police Department )
According to initial investigations, Moynihan herself had become a victim of fraud and wanted to "recoup" the lost money.

Husband raised the alarm
The pensioner's husband finally filed a complaint when he discovered that 600,000 dollars had disappeared from the account. Experts were able to identify the recipient of the last bank transfer.

The victim had sent 250,000 dollars to the account of "Jeff's Painting and Pressure Washing LLC" in Bradenton - where it was still sitting. The owner of the account was Moynihan, who was arrested by the police in Florida for fraud and grand theft. 

(Bild: Bradenton Police Department )

Curiousmotive
The perpetrator's motive is probably curious: according to initial investigations, the man himself had become the victim of a so-called love scam (scammers trigger feelings of love and affection in their victims and thus lure money out of their pockets) and wanted to "recoup" the lost money.

No investigation into the "real" Musk
According to the police, "our police department is not investigating the real Elon Musk". The "fake" billionaire was released on bail of 15,000 dollars. 

This article has been automatically translated,
read the original article here.

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