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HENRY COUNTY, Ga. - It is a scam so well thought out that police said crooks are tricking people out of thousands of dollars. The company appears to be legit and the website looks fine and the business even appears registered with the state, but police said it is not a real.
"I will never buy anything online again," said Samuel McNutt.
McNutt feels that way after he was scammed out of $25,000. He thought he was purchasing an excavator. He said he did his homework, even asked his bank if it looked legit, and they agreed. So, he wired money from his bank to another bank where the money was picked up by a female, but the excavator never arrived. Little did he know the website he was going through was a fake.
"I felt like a fool. I consider myself pretty savvy common sense about certain things," said McNutt.
The one clue he has is surveillance video. Police said a woman walked into a SunTrust Bank in Stockbridge and withdrew the $25,000 Samuel wired over for his excavator. Police said she used a fake name and investigators believe she created a fake business named Ideal State Services LLC.
"It’s a very confusing type of scheme. These individuals are doing a lot of homework. Opening websites, when you go on the websites and it looks legit. Follow up with the state, and they're registered. Looks like up and up but it's not," said Captain Mike Ireland, Henry County Police Department
Police said the excavator that was for sell actually belonged to a dealer in Louisiana. Police believe the couple stole his identity and that is how he is conning people.