Scam Type
Government Grant Scam
Business Name Used
federalgovernmentgrantscourier
Date Reported
Aug 24, 2022
Victim Postal Code
84094
Total Dollars Lost
0
Scam Description
I was naive and in very desperate need of money because of hard times I found myself in. I saw someone on YouTube talk about a person who went by the name Bishop Ralph and that they offer federal government grants and how they were accepted for a good amount. He said to contact “Bishop Ralph’s “ WHATS app phone number for more information and to get this started. Me being in desperate need and as a last resort, I contacted him to see if he could help. He seemed professional and legit at first. He said all the right things and made it seem like I had to do certain things to qualify and he’d do all the back end work. Everything was fine at first and I was hopeful I could get the help I need financially.
He asked for a whole load of sensitive/personal information such as my date of birth, full name, address, last 4 of Social security number, and pictures of my ID. Because he seemed trust worthy and I was very very oblivious and dumb I sent this information. I know I was very dumb for this but I needed this and trusted to much in the moment.
He went about the whole thing acting as though everything was processing and going through smooth. He said it’d either be sent as a check or security cash and that’s when I started getting fishy. He then proceeded to say there was a tax fee and delivery fee and that’s when I started to assume it was a scam. When I explained my concerns to him he said it wasn’t and said all the right words to make it seem like everything was fine. He said he could bypass the fees and said he’d send the package himself because of this. He also sent a video to me, of himself getting a package ready at FedEx ( I don’t even know if it was real or legit video) he said I’d get an email when the package was an hr away. I again immediately got a bad, scary feeling and I didn’t know what the package would entail because he never specified details about that. Everything worried me so much considering he has my most sensitive information. I lost all trust and I deleted all of my information I sent almost right away, but I know theres been damage done and I’m full of regret. I was oblivious to all the red flags and I gave a total stranger all my information but he portrayed himself to be someone working for the federal government as a grant agent. He also portrayed himself as a Bishop who lives to help people get financially set with grants. I know he was scamming me all along now but I’m terrified because this is my families home too and I’m scared he’ll contact or do something harmful
