Titusville business owner says she was 'duped' in $60,000 scheme

Company wants others to beware

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – A Titusville business owner says her company got caught in a $60,000 credit card and wire transfer scheme.

Jackie McLaughlin with Accurate Metal Door says the internet heist allowed crooks to make off with tens of thousands of dollars. It started with a simple email from a potential customer, like they've received thousands of times before, according to McLaughlin.

"It seemed like every other order that we've processed in the last 25 years of owning this business," she said. "I've never experienced anything this crazy."

The email was from a customer inquiring about purchasing commercial doors, which is the company's specialty. It was a specific inquiry, according to McLaughlin.

"He knew the lingo. He knew the specifics of what he wanted," she said.

McLaughlin has dozens of emails where the order was discussed, tweaked and fine-tuned. Then the transactions started.  

The first three orders, each for more than $20,000, were paid for over the phone by credit card and went through with no problem.

But the fourth transaction was declined. The credit card company called McLaughlin saying the card was being used fraudulently.

"That's when I got that feeling in my stomach that something wasn't right," McLaughlin said.  "It was the first red flag after a month of dealing with this gentleman."           

McLaughlin started retracing her steps. McLaughlin suspects the first three transactions were paid for with stolen credit cards since the order was never picked up. The transactions included shipping fees to a shipping company the customer requested. The company's name is Skyline Logistics, Inc. based out of California, according to a website.

McLaughlin spoke to an alleged company representative who sent a bill of lading, outlining the order number, pickup location and destination.

"All the processes that we have in place to ensure that this doesn't happen, they were able to manipulate all of those forms," McLaughlin said.

Skyline Logistics Inc. is the name of a real company, but McLaughlin believes the crooks created a fake website, fake quotes, and fake bill of lading. News 6 tried emailing, and calling the company via the website, but never heard back.

The nearly $27,000 in shipping fees that McLaughlin sent them is gone, according to McLaughlin.

"It's like being punched in the stomach. It's a sickening feeling," she said.

Cpl. Timothy Werring with the Titusville Police Department says fraud cases are on the rise and taking different forms.

"Sometimes the solvability factors are there, sometimes they're not there," Werring said. "We are trying to take a proactive approach with these fraud cases informing people what to be aware of."

McLaughlin believes the scheme was too elaborate for one person to pull off.  

"It's definitely a criminal organization," she said. "It's mind-blowing to me that people are talking about this."

That's why McLaughlin is speaking out, so other businesses can beware. After 25 years in business, the company is now implementing new policies, like requiring credit applications from all potential customers to make sure it doesn't happen again, McLaughlin said.


About the Author:

Emmy Award-winning reporter Louis Bolden joined the News 6 team in September of 2001 and hasn't gotten a moment's rest since. Louis has been a General Assignment Reporter for News 6 and Weekend Morning Anchor. He joined the Special Projects/Investigative Unit in 2014.

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