Consumer complaint received 2022-05-16
Company: M&T BANK CORPORATION
State: MD
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Virtual currency
Issue: Fraud or scam

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX, I had received an incoming call from an unknown number. I decided to ignore it since I was at work but the caller would not stop spamming their calls. I finally answered them to figure out who it was, just to find that they were calling letting me know that there has been someone using my identification for money laundering and drug trafficking using a false passport. I was already extremely skeptical since I know that I am completely innocent but decided to listen. They had explained to me that they were calling to confirm my identity. I asked many questions such as their identification numbers and their name and they had claimed that they are an ICE officer. They were calling from the official ICE number and told me to stay in a secure area and to make sure not to answer any phone calls while I was on the phone with them so that they can ensure that I was not contacting outside personnel. They gave me a set a rules to abide by or else I would have to go to jail for further investigation. So I complied so I could prove my innocence. They told me not to tell anyone about this call, not to answer any phone calls while on the phone with them, and to tell them if anyone is calling to confirm that I wasn't conspiring an " escape ''. I had kept receiving a call from an unknown number and let the officer know. They told me to search up who it was and it was the XXXX police department phone number ( At the time I had been at work which is in XXXX ). They told me to answer and when I did, the " police officer '' told me that I had a warrant against me and that they needed direct contact from the ICE officer to send them the current information they had received on their end. I then continued to read many forms on the ICE website so that I understood everything that is going on ( according to the ICE officer ). Once the XXXX police department received the information from the ICE officer, they told me that I had 2 options. 1, I could go to jail for 5-7 days so that they can thoroughly go through a background check, or 2, I could sign a bond to ensure that I will be monitored XXXX to make sure I am not doing any criminal activity or try to leave, and that I would not have to spend my time in jail. I went for option 2 so that I wouldn't have to waste my time in jail. They explained to me that they have lawyers on hand to officiate the bond and approve the monitoring process. They then told me to get an app to access my phone and see exactly what I was doing to make sure I wasn't talking to anyone else. They had me go through my bank ( M & T Bank ) and told me that I was able to send the money for the lawyer through XXXX. They then told me where to send the money and to who and I had sent {$950.00}. I then immediately realized that this was a scam once they had told me that I needed to get prepaid cards. I then told them that I wasn't going to do that and that I was going to call the XXXX police department to verify the person working on my claim. I called the police department to find that said person did not work there and that the scammer had hung up. I then contacted 911 and put in a police report of what happened. I then called M & T Bank to see if there was anything I could do to get the money back. They told me that I could make a claim and that the money should be able to come through within the next 10 days or so. So I had gotten a new card number and waited for their response. I then received a letter in the mail stating that my dispute had been declined and that I could call a their support line for further questions. I called and asked if there was anything on my end to support my case and they had told me to send in my policer report to the nearest branch to reopen my dispute. After a few weeks or so, I still had not gotten confirmation on my case so I decided to call back to get an update. They looked into my account and told me my dispute had been declined again. According to the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, I had been induced into transferring the money so the bank must reimburse the money sent, even if I technically authorized the money being sent.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation