Dartmouth Police arrest New York man on fraud charges

Sep 17, 2024

A New York man has been arrested on fraud charges after Dartmouth Police received a report of a resident in town who had possibly been scammed out of $30,000, according to Dartmouth Police. 

The Dartmouth man contacted police Thursday, Sept. 12 to report the alleged scam.

He said he received a pop-up on his computer noting that it had been hacked and that he needed to call “Apple Security” at a provided number, according to police.

While on the phone, someone who claimed to work at “Apple Security” told the man that his bank account had been compromised and personal information was being used for illegal activities, police said. 

Soon after, someone claiming to be from the victim’s bank reportedly informed the alleged victim that his bank account was compromised and that he would need to withdraw their funds and move them to a new account immediately.

The alleged victim was reportedly instructed to make two separate $15,000 cash withdrawals on two separate days, according to police. The person who said they worked at the bank allegedly said they would send someone to the Dartmouth man’s home to pick up the cash and deposit it into a new account.

Both days, an individual showed up at the alleged victim’s house to pick up the cash, police said. The reported victim called the police shortly after the second visit.

Dartmouth’s Detective Kyle Berube conducted a follow-up investigation on Friday, Sept. 13. Detectives from the Community Impact Unit and patrol officers helped devise a reverse sting operation designed to identify the individual picking up the cash.

Approximately eight hours later, a male arrived at an undisclosed location to collect the additional cash.

Bishi Zhu, 29, of Brooklyn, New York was placed under arrest. He is being charged with attempts to commit a crime and conspiracy.

The case, which is being led by Berube, is still under investigation.