How the con artist got away with the cash
The fraudster impersonated White, walking directly into Chase branches with fake ID to withdraw money from her account, sometimes multiple days in a row
White admits she hadn't checked her bank account in months when she discovered the fraud. When she finally reviewed her bank records, she immediately noticed something was wrong. As she demonstrated to NBC, her handwriting and that on the withdrawal slips don’t match up.
Despite these inconsistencies, Chase Bank allowed the transactions to continue — until White’s savings were wiped out.
“Somebody should have recognized that this is an outrageous amount of transactions every day,” White told NBC News Chicago.
After losing her life savings, White had to pull her son out of private school.
“I worked hard for that money. And that's what I did for a living. Help people who are victims of crimes, fraud. And here I became a victim myself,” White shared.
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Learn MoreWhy she didn’t report the fraud sooner
White didn’t discover the fraud until late in the game, explaining that she rarely checked the account, only withdrawing money in person for her son's allowance and other family expenses.
However, Chase has a strict fraud policy: Customers must report fraudulent transactions within 30 days of receiving their bank statements. Most banks have a similar policy. That’s why the bank denied her fraud claim.
NBC News investigated the Chase branch where the majority of the fraudulent withdrawals occurred. Chicago police records show that multiple customers at that branch reported unauthorized withdrawals from their accounts. More than a dozen customers also reported being robbed or scammed while using the branch's ATM.
Chase reviewed White's case but said their decision will not be reversed. They shared a statement that read, in part:
"As we remind all customers, it is important to review your monthly statements and if you see any unauthorized transactions to let us know right away. We provide customers with many steps to boost account security, including setting up account alerts to receive notifications whenever there’s a purchase or withdrawal from your account that’s over a certain amount."
To protect yourself, make it a habit to review your bank statements regularly and report any suspicious activity immediately. If your bank offers transaction alerts, set one up. These notifications can warn you in real-time about unusual activity, large transactions or card-not-present purchases.
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