New Smyrna Beach, Florida

A couple from New Smyrna Beach received a fraud alert from their bank about suspicious account activity.

Despite disputing the charge, a sum of $950 was withdrawn from their account.

Austin and Jessica Reeves are trying to wrap their heads around the situation.

“I think the bank should have protected me in that situation, but they didn’t,” Austin said. “It was clearly fraud.”

The couple’s bank, Wells Fargo, also flagged the transactions as suspicious.

They received a high-priority alert asking them to examine recent card use.

At that same time, Austin got a text saying, “Did you know that your $950 transaction to Coinbase was declined on Card 3585? Please respond yes or no.”

They replied “no,” but received a response saying “invalid command,” allowing the transaction to go through anyway.

“I was pretty confused. I thought saying no would stop the card, but somehow it went through,” Austin remarked.

The $950 charge was initially denied, but just four minutes later, it was approved according to their bank statement.

Prior to this, there were two small fraudulent transactions to Coinbase for $1.25 and $1.57, which the bank quickly refunded.

However, they did not see a refund for the $950 charge.

“I said no, so I think the $950 should have been refunded immediately,” Austin told a local news outlet.

The couple then decided to file a lawsuit against Wells Fargo, but their claims were consistently denied.

The bank told them that “upon investigation, we have confirmed that the card used was in your possession at the time of the charge, and the shipping address provided to the seller matches the address on file with us.”

“I think we can all agree that in today’s digital age, you don’t need a physical card to use someone else’s card. Skimmers can get your information,” Austin pointed out.

Jessica added, “There are so many data breaches and ways in which a card can be compromised.”

The day after the $950 charge, Wells Fargo rejected a $200 Coinbase attempt, and two days later, two charges of $50 were also denied.

“I don’t feel like my money is protected at all,” Austin admitted.

The couple has been seeking resolution for three months.

News 6 reached out to Wells Fargo for a comment.

After several calls and a few days of waiting, a bank spokesperson responded.

“We appreciate you bringing this issue to our attention. After reviewing the additional information, we are pleased to resolve the issue, and the money has been returned to your account. We apologize for the inconvenience and concern we caused during the resolution process. This does not reflect the level of service we aim to provide,” the statement read.

Relieved, the Reeves expressed their gratitude.

“Thank you for all your help. Investigative reporting is really important. Thank you,” said Austin.