Alex Delgado tried to hang up on the caller several times, but the scammer kept her on the phone until $72,000 was gone

A former Fresno news anchor was scammed out of $72,000 after receiving a text message that appeared to come from the stock trading app Robinhood, as detailed by the New York Post. Alex Delgado, who spent 22 years in the news business before leaving in 2020, said she called a number listed in the message after it claimed there was suspicious activity on her account.

The person who answered offered to transfer her to a fraud department, and the caller claimed someone in Asia was accessing her account from an Android phone. She was told her money needed to be moved to a different account while the matter was investigated. Over the next two days, Delgado said she was guided step by step through transferring her funds, even though she tried to end the call several times.

By the time Delgado realized what had happened, her money was already gone. She said the scam felt convincing because the caller sounded professional and used technical language to appear legitimate.

Delgado is urging others not to trust unsolicited callers

Fresno Police Detective Timothy Johnson said people should watch for red flags such as a manufactured sense of urgency or a caller who will not let them end the conversation, according to Fox News. He said scam messages are increasingly designed to look like they are coming from real financial institutions or private businesses.

Experts advise against calling any number listed in an unsolicited text, since legitimate companies do not handle account security through unexpected phone calls. Instead, people are encouraged to log in through an official app or by typing a company’s website directly into a browser. Unrelated theft cases have also drawn attention recently, including an equipment theft case involving a Tennessee high school baseball program.

Security experts also recommend turning on two factor authentication, since it can block access to an account even if a password has been stolen. Using a unique password for each account and reporting suspicious texts as spam are additional steps that are commonly advised.

Separate from the scam, other consumer billing disputes have circulated online this week, including a disputed hotel fee a guest said she was charged without cause. Consumers are generally advised to keep records of any communication in case a charge or suspected scam needs to be disputed later.

Delgado has since reported the fraud to multiple institutions, but there has been no sign of the money being recovered.