A few weeks ago, I received an annoying phone call, and the lady was very persistent. She guaranteed me a government grant of at least $12,000 to use as I needed. She made it sound logical; the government DOES give away millions of dollars in grants every year. Although I remained skeptical, I finally caved in and said "Yes" that I would pay just $49.95 for the information and what I thought would be forms to fill out for my grant application. I gave her my routing number and bank account number to withdraw $49.95 on Thursday of that week, Thursday being payday.
Approximately a week later, I received a small box in the mail. I opened it the next day. No hurry. After all, I really doubted that this piece of mail would change my life.
What I found inside that box was, simply, a coupon book and what looked to me like a letter. I scanned it quickly; they seemed to be offering me health insurance, which I already have. So I turned my attention to the coupon book, because they had also promised me $500 in grocery coupons.
I read a few sentences of the coupon book, and immediately thought, "Scam!" To actually receive any coupons would mean a lot of messing around on my computer, with the mail, and on the telephone. I didn't feel that it was worth my time.
I stuffed the two pieces back into the box, intending to throw them away eventually. I remember thinking, "You idiot! You just wasted fifty bucks. Almost a full day's pay down the drain."
Well, it only gets worse from there. After having my debit card denied for a ten dollar purchase, I got a printout of my bank transactions for the previous week. There was a $299.95 charge on Thursday, throwing my checking account balance into the red.
I had to wait until Monday to go to the bank to find out who they had given my money to, and surprise! It was Advantage America. The bank manager also told me they held no responsibility for the withdrawal.
The bank manager gave me a copy of the electronic check, and the phone number of Advantage America was on the check. I have just spent two days trying to call them, and I keep getting a recording, saying all of their circuits are busy.
Meanwhile, two of my checks have bounced. The bank is, of course, charging me overdraft charges and returning my checks. So far, I am out almost $400 to these con artists, and there are lots more overdraft charges to come.
Because this money was stolen from my account, I will not be able to pay my apartment rent on the first of October, and we all know what happens to people who don't pay their rent!!!
Can someone help me? I don't know what else I can do!
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