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1. What is obtaining money by false pretense?

This is when a person or persons use a misleading story and / or documents in order to persuade the victim to turn over money or property. They may use tricks, lies or some other form of deception.

2. What is an example of this crime?

Here are some examples of obtaining money by false pretenses:

• In the parking lot of a grocery store, you are approached by someone claiming to have a winning lottery ticket. They are unable to cash in the ticket and are willing to sell it to you for much less than the winning amount.  After you agree and buy the ticket, you find out it isn’t real. 
• Someone asks you to donate money to the Loudoun County Police Department. You provide them with $200. The person calling has committed this offense as there is no “Loudoun County Police Department”. In Loudoun, we have a Sheriff’s Office, which serves as the chief law enforcement agency for our citizens.

3. What should I do if I am the victim of false pretense?

1. File a police report in the correct jurisdiction. The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office will investigate the crime if it occurs within Loudoun County. To meet the elements of this crime, there must be an actual loss of money or property. If the loss physically occurred outside the jurisdictional boundaries of Loudoun County, then you should contact that jurisdiction. If the event occurred online, and you were located in Loudoun County, then the Sheriff's Office will investigate the case.
2. Contact the consumer credit reporting companies listed below. Make sure to place a Fraud Alert on your credit report. When you do this, the creditors are required to contact you any time there is a request for credit, before credit is extended.
3. Be sure to close any account that you know has been compromised.
4. Call your financial institutions and speak with a fraud specialist.
5. Collect all relevant information / documentation supporting your case and provide that in the narrative of your report. Copies of all information should be provided to the detective assigned and one should be kept for your records. Examples of this information include:
   • Emails: include any correspondence as well as any email addresses that you have.
   • Phone numbers
   • Bank statements
   • Credit card statements

4. What can I do to avoid becoming a victim of False Pretenses?

Learn about this on our How to Avoid Becoming a Victim of False Pretenses page.