ORANGEBURG, S.C. — A Facebook scam is making the rounds in Orangeburg and Sheriff Leroy Ravenel wants the public to be aware.
"This one is extremely deceiving in that you actually watch a video of a person known to you explaining how to get $5,000 for nearly free," the sheriff said. "It's not true. The deceiving part is the video is made before that promised $5,000 is received."
Ravenell said that only one call reporting the scam has been reported in Orangeburg County and that came on Wednesday afternoon.
"When we received this information, we immediately gathered all detail that we could to give to our community," he said.
The scam in Orangeburg County began on the social media platform Facebook where Wednesday's victim reported seeing a friend state in a video you can receive $5,000 by sending a payment to a "Pam Drain," according to investigators.
The victims stated she was instructed to send more than $200 to the Pam Drain persona to receive the money.
However, before she would receive the thousands in cash, she had to post a video saying she had received the money explaining how the next victim could get $5,000.
The Orangeburg County victim received no money after making her video and sending in the $240 to the fake Facebook persona.
"Do not fall for this in spite of the fact you know the person in the video," Ravenell urged. "This is a scam of the worst kind. No one gives away free money. Keep yours and call us."
If you have received a similar message or video on social media, contact the Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office, your local law enforcement agency or Crimestoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC.
