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WXYZ-TV reports a retired couple were told they had won an $850,000 sweepstakes, then asked for over $2,500 in gift cards before any payout.
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WXYZ-TVA phone call claiming you have won a sweepstakes prize is a scam if the caller asks for money before you get paid. As reported by WXYZ-TV, a retired couple was told they had won $850,000, then asked to pay more than $2,500 upfront. Hang up and do not send any money, gift cards or wire transfers to claim a prize.
Tom and Cheryl Bredestege got a call from a man who said his name was Albert. He told them they had won a sweepstakes prize worth $850,000. He said they were being rewarded for years of paying their bills on time and keeping good credit. Then came the catch. Before they could collect the money, he said, they needed to pay more than $2,500 in taxes. He told them to buy Amazon gift cards to cover it.
While a reporter was interviewing the couple about the call, the same man called again. This time he asked if they could come up with $36,000. The prize amount had gone up, he said, and they needed to keep it secret.
That second call, landing mid-interview, shows the scam does not stop once a target hesitates. It escalates. The demand for secrecy arrives at the same time as the demand for more money, because a caller who cannot be checked with anyone else is a caller who controls the whole conversation.
Josh Planos of the Better Business Bureau said these scams work because they appeal to the idea of a golden ticket, an idea that reaches people regardless of age or sophistication. He pointed to two signs that matter most: being told you won something you never entered, and being asked to pay before you receive anything. Legitimate sweepstakes do not charge taxes, shipping or processing fees to release a prize.
The Federal Trade Commission lists warning signs for prize calls: a caller claiming to represent the government or a well-known organization, pressure to act immediately, a request to send money back after being mailed a check, and insistence on payment by gift card, wire transfer or payment app.
The Bredesteges did not lose any money. They caught on before paying. Cheryl Bredestege said she understood how someone could fall for it, especially a senior citizen told they are finally being rewarded for years of good behavior. Her advice is to walk away the moment a prize call asks for payment, and to tell a parent directly: do not go get that cashier's check to pay the taxes.
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