May 29, 2016 – A mortgage rate of 2.25 percent was too good to pass up for a 56-year-old man who works in the Loop but it was a scam that cost him about $700.

According to Chicago police, the victim, who works at Leo Burnett Building, thought he was talking on the telephone with an employee of U.S. Bank on May 5 at about 4 p.m. The man who called him knew his U.S. Bank account number and other information that convinced the victim.

The caller offered the low mortgage rate but only if the victim immediately wired $697.50. The victim sent the money using MoneyGram but soon realized it was a scam. Minneapolis-based U.S. Bank confirmed it when he called, telling the victim no one from their bank had contacted him.