Consumer complaint received 2026-01-26 00:00:00
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service — Domestic (US) money transfer
Issue: Fraud or scam — 
Company: PNC Bank N.A.
State: MA

Complaint narrative:
I am submitting this complaint as a victim of a coordinated financial fraud and cybercrime involving impersonation of government officials, coercion, and forced financial transactions. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, unknown individuals contacted me via phone and digital communication ( XXXX XXXX on my phone ) while falsely representing themselves as officials from law enforcement and government agencies, including the police, the Central Bureau of Investigation ( CBI ), and the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency ( CIA ). They alleged that I was involved in a transnational money laundering investigation related to the XXXX case and claimed that my identity and financial accounts were under investigation. 

I was told that to clear my name and obtain a so-called financial clearance certificate from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network ( FinCEN ), I was required to cooperate fully and follow strict instructions. I was explicitly threatened with arrest, legal consequences, and reputational harm if I did not comply. I was also instructed that this matter was a national security secret and was warned not to disclose any information to anyone, including my family, financial institutions, or legal counsel. 

Under this pressure and fear, I was instructed to : Open a new PNC bank account under their direction Transfer my personal funds into this account Move those funds to the XXXX  application Convert the funds into XXXX  ( XXXX  ) Transfer the XXXX  to a wallet address provided by the perpetrators These instructions were presented as a temporary inspection or verification process required for financial clearance. At no point was I informed that these actions were illegitimate. I now understand that these representations were false and fraudulent. 

Due to the sustained coercion, intimidation, and isolation tactics used against me, I continued to comply until I exhausted my available funds totaling {$600000.00}. The financial loss was significant and caused severe emotional distress. 

I was coerced into performing a wire transfer from my PNC bank account to the XXXX XXXX  under false pretenses. The perpetrators, posing as government officials, threatened me with serious legal consequences if I did not comply. Once the funds were transferred, I was instructed to convert them into XXXX and send the XXXX  to an external cold wallet as part of a so-called " financial clearance '' process. These transactions were not voluntary ; they were carried out under duress and were part of a fraudulent scheme designed to deceive me into transferring funds. The use of my bank account and the subsequent actions through the XXXX XXXX  were based on fraudulent claims made by individuals impersonating law enforcement and regulatory authorities. I was led to believe that I had no choice but to comply in order to clear my name from a fabricated legal case. 

After realizing I had been defrauded, I formally reported the incident to the Federal Bureau of Investigation via IC3 ( ic3.gov ). This complaint is being submitted to request regulatory review, documentation of the financial institutions involvement, and any assistance or guidance available regarding consumer protection, improper account use, and fraud prevention. 

I am requesting that this complaint be reviewed as a case of financial fraud, impersonation of government officials, and coercive extortion that resulted in forced financial transactions under duress. 

Summary of Timeline : XX/XX/XXXX : First contact from fraudsters, posing as government officials. 
Date of First Wire Transfer : ( XX/XX/XXXX ) Amount Transferred : {$95000.00} Transferred To : XXXX XXXX ( as instructed by the scammers ) ( XX/XX/XXXX ) Purpose of Transfer : To begin the so-called " financial clearance '' process, which was later revealed to be a scam. 
Action Taken : I initiated the transfer under duress after being told that my funds needed to be inspected by government authorities. 
Date of Second Wire Transfer : ( XX/XX/XXXX ) Amount Transferred : {$100000.00} Transferred To : XXXX XXXX  ( XX/XX/XXXX ) Purpose of Transfer : Following the initial transfer, I was instructed to send more funds to continue the process of clearing my name. 
Action Taken : I complied with the instructions, fearing legal consequences and believing the process to be legitimate. 
Date of Third Wire Transfer : ( XX/XX/XXXX ) Amount Transferred : {$150000.00} Transferred To : XXXX XXXX ( XX/XX/XXXX ) Purpose of Transfer : I was further pressured by the scammers to send additional funds for inspection, with threats of arrest if I did not comply. 
Action Taken : Again, I complied out of fear and under duress. 
Date of Fourth Wire Transfer : ( XX/XX/XXXX ) Amount Transferred : {$250000.00} Transferred To : XXXX XXXX ( XX/XX/XXXX ) Purpose of Transfer : Final transfer requested by the fraudsters to complete the " clearance '' process. 
Action Taken : I transferred the last of my available funds to the app, believing this would end the process and clear my name. 
Total Amount Transferred : Total Amount : {$600000.00} This is the cumulative total of the 4 wire transfers that were made from my personal bank account to the XXXX XXXX  under fraudulent conditions. 

Actions Taken by Me : 1. Date of filing complaint with FBI : ( XX/XX/XXXX ) I went to the FBI XXXX office in person to report the situation. They confirmed that I was not involved in any legal case and assured me that this was indeed a scam. I then filed a formal complaint with the FBI through IC3.gov, providing detailed information about the fraudulent wire transfers and the tactics used by the scammers.

2. Date of dispute initiation : ( XX/XX/XXXX ) I contacted my bank and initiated a dispute for the 4 wire transfers, as I realized they were fraudulent. The bank began their dispute process.

3. Date of complaint with XXXX XXXX : ( XX/XX/XXXX ) I contacted XXXX XXXX via their support chat to report the fraudulent activity and notify them of the scam, providing details of the transactions and the actions taken by the perpetrators Actions Taken by the Company XXXX Bank and XXXX XXXX ) : Banks action on dispute : ( XX/XX/XXXX ) The bank confirmed that the dispute process was initiated for the four wire transfers. They informed me that I would be notified about the resolution of the dispute via mail. 
XXXX XXXX : ( XX/XX/XXXX ) XXXX XXXX responded, stating that XXXX transactions are final and irreversible, and they can not provide support for such issues. They advised me to report the incident to the FBI, which I had already done.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation