Consumer complaint received 2020-11-30
Company: UNITED SERVICES AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION
State: TX
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Domestic (US) money transfer
Issue: Fraud or scam

Complaint:
I had recently filed for divorce after a 35-year marriage and was hoping to use the {$50000.00} settlement money for a down payment on a house. Starting about XX/XX/XXXX, while I was playing XXXX XXXX XXXX on XXXX, a player started to chat with me using the account XXXX Using my XXXX profile information and knowing from that that I was a semi-retired XXXX, he gave me the story that he was in the XXXX XXXX serving in XXXX, parents not living, and only an uncle still living. Grew up in XXXX with a current address in XXXX, FL. He wanted me to contact his base commander with the following information about him to request that even though COVID was raging around the world, if I as his " fiance '' ( which I never claimed or accepted as truth ) could get him on a flight out on XXXX, where he had been " transferred '' to in XX/XX/XXXX. 
This was the information " XXXX  '' provided : XXXX XXXX-XXXX/XXXX [ XXXX ] XXXX XXXX XXXX He began by asking me to donate to a local orphanage in XXXX that he likes to go to on his days off. I eventually agreed as that tugged at my heartstrings, so " XXXX XXXX '' sent me the info to transfer cryptocurrency into XXXX which I was not really familiar with. 

Over time, " XXXX '' told me he loved me and wanted a life with me once he completed his deployment and retirement papers. That soon developed into he has some valuable-5 gold bars-that he was shipping to me for safekeeping until he returned home. 

This fake company, XXXX XXXX XXXX, looked legitimate when I XXXX  it, and I was none the wiser. In XX/XX/XXXX, the " shipment '' stalled supposedly in Alaska as cargo insurance had not been bought, so it would remain there on hold until this was taken care of. I ignored and tried to block him until about XX/XX/XXXX, when he was able to reach me again through previous " confirmation '' emails from XXXX XXXX XXXX that he was cc 'd on. 

After time, I would get occasional updates from the XXXX XXXX saying it was " not enroute to Montana, followed by Alabama, and then finally XXXX, TX. '' Any time I was in doubt or wanted to stop this " transaction, '' he would threaten me and my family as he knew where I lived and had actually emailed/contacted my now ex-husband. 

The shipment from " XXXX XXXX XXXX  '' had the tracking number of XXXX and the agent that the money went to is : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Acct # XXXX IBAN : XXXX Swift code : XXXX Address : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX  The total amount taken from me was {$21000.00} and though I contacted my bank even when a transaction was marked as " pending, '' they told me since it was a wire transfer it was already being processed and to try contacting the other bank/agency. 

The original report I filed in XXXX with the FTC has a report # XXXX One last thing, on XX/XX/XXXX, I reopened my XXXX for a business account, and " XXXX '' commented under the fake profile, XXXX XXXX of " Sports Team '' of XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX and on his ... info XXXX  profile, he had XXXX listed instead of XXXX XXXX. 
XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX the XXXX part above is a portion of my email address which he is aware of XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation