Woman says scammer stole $3K in PCH scheme, then tried to catfish her with ‘all that kind of crap’

CHARLOTTE — Kitty Musard sat on her patio chair that reads “Harley-Davidson” and says she was taken for a ride.

“I was fit to be tied,” she told Action 9 investigator Jason Stoogenke.

She used to play Publishers Clearing House but says she never won but thought that all changed one day.

She got a letter that read, “Congratulations! ... You are one of the lucky winners.”

“[It] said I was going to win $1.95 million,” she said.

She told Stoogenke she called the number, and they told her that all she had to do was pay $3,000 to claim her winnings, so she did.

“I learned a hard lesson,” she said. “And, boy, was I hot whenever all that happened.”

“We are very angered by the imposters,” Chris Irving, a lawyer for PCH, told Stoogenke.

Irving said:

If you win a major prize, PCH’s famous Prize Patrol will show up with the big check, flowers, and champagne.
It’s all unannounced. PCH doesn’t tell major winners ahead of time they’ve won.
Scammers may tell you to keep it a secret; PCH never will.
You never have to pay to claim a PCH prize.

“If you’re asked to send money, it is a scam. Do not send any money. Hang up the phone. Rip up the letter. Delete the email,” Irving said.

Musard says that after her ordeal, a scammer, likely the same one, tried another con on her: Catfishing.

“He tried to get real romantic, wanted to become my boyfriend, and all that kind of crap,” she said.

She said she is much more careful when she goes to the mailbox and wants you to be, too.

“Who knows that they won’t just give [a scammer] everything he asks for?” she said.

If you fall victim to this, or any scam, tell law enforcement.

It can be tough to catch the criminals and to get money back, but it can happen.

VIDEO: Age-old Publishers Clearing House scam seems to be popping up more

Age-old Publishers Clearing House scam seems to be popping up more

Most Read