Fake car dealership costs Washington man $56K, similar scam reported last week

GILLETTE (WNE) —  An 80-year-old Washington man lost $56,500 when he paid for what he believed would be two vehicles from a car dealership in Gillette.

Deputies found that someone claiming to be an employee with Wild West Enterprise, a used car dealer on Bird Drive, “sold” the 80-year-old two vehicles online. The man lives in Washington and paid the suspect online through his Navy Federal Credit Union account, Undersheriff Quentin Reynolds said.

The $56,500 payment was supposed to go to a Gillette Wells Fargo bank, but Reynolds said it’s unclear where the money ended up.

Reynolds said the fake employee set up a “bogus” website using Wild West Enterprise’s name and an old address and phone number for a Gillette attorney.

This is the second time this month someone’s reported a scam using the name of Wild West Enterprise.

Last week, someone with the car dealer reported that a person had duplicated the company’s website with a phone number that directed callers to a scammer. In the initial report, it was unclear if any money was lost and the woman who called it in was instructed to contact the FBI and warn customers of the scam.

Reynolds said deputies contacted the FBI fraud department again, as well as the man’s bank.

This story was published on March 26, 2024.