Facebook scam leads Missouri woman to think her friend is in trouble, wire money to England

Facebook scam leads woman to wire funds abroad

ST. LOUIS — Police say a Missouri woman was tricked into wiring about $4,000 to an account in England after receiving messages from a friend on Facebook asking for help.

Cape Girardeau Police Sgt. Jason Selzer said Wednesday that a woman told his department last week that she had been tricked into sending the money by Western Union after hearing her friend and her friend’s husband were being detained in London and needed money to leave.

The friend, Grace Parry, told the Southeast Missourian newspaper that someone took over her Facebook account and posed as her. She has since suspended the account.

Facebook, based in Palo Alto, Calif., said Internet scams like this aren’t uncommon.

Information from: Southeast Missourian, www.semissourian.com