Chesterfield Police looking for scammer allegedly defrauding victims out of thousands through banking scheme

CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Police in Chesterfield County are still looking for a man whom they say is behind a banking scheme defrauding victims out of thousands of dollars.

On Wednesday, Oct. 12, Bob Kaputof spoke with 8News about the money he had lost as a result of the scheme. Kaputof said he was on vacation when he opened his banking app and saw a startling surprise.

“When I got back and checked it, I went ‘uh-oh,'” Kaputof said about the moment he made the disturbing discovery that his bank account had been breeched.

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While Kaputof did not disclose just how much money he had lost, he said it was upwards of $10,000. What’s more disturbing is that Kaputof said this was the second time the suspect got into his bank account.

Photos: Chesterfield Police

“You were like, ‘whoa that’s a little shocking.’ One [incident] happened one week and then the other [incident] happened a week later,” Kaputof said.

Kaputof, who is retired and living on a fixed income, later learned from police that the suspect had been captured by surveillance cameras while he was allegedly attempting to make a withdrawal from a victim’s account.

According to Chesterfield Police, the suspect reportedly obtained victims’ personal information from their out-of-state identification cards to make multiple withdrawals at two local Virginia Credit Union locations. Police also said the suspect was involved in a separate fraud case, but they did not elaborate on the details of that case.

“If you ask me what made me a target [as] opposed to anybody else, I’m going to honestly answer you with I have no idea,” Kaputof told 8News. However, he does believe that technology may have played a role in making it easier for scammers to obtain people’s personal information.

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“Soon as we got these (holds up his iPhone) — all your information’s out there. It could happen to anybody, and you might’ve done nothing wrong, whatsoever,” Kaputof said, before adding that it’s important for people who are concerned to have a conversation with their bank about how to protect themselves from these kinds of scams.

The investigation into the incident remains ongoing and police are continuing to search for the suspect. Anyone with information is asked to contact Chesterfield Police at 804-748-1251.