Dickson County, TN — A Tennessee woman is out $40,000 after falling victim to a sophisticated PayPal phishing scam, but thanks to swift work by the Dickson County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO), a Texas woman is now in custody.
According to an arrest affidavit filed in Dickson County General Sessions Court, the incident began on April 24 when the local victim received an email appearing to be from PayPal. The message claimed her account had an unpaid balance and included a phone number. When she called, a man identifying himself as “Richard Martin” said she had been mistakenly charged and was eligible for a refund.
The caller instructed the woman to download the remote desktop app AnyDesk and input $364 for the refund. However, the screen showed a $39,000 transfer instead. The scammer claimed the large refund was an error and insisted she return the money to avoid him losing his job. The woman was shown fake bank statements and told to withdraw $39,700 and deposit it into a Bitcoin ATM — which she did.
Still in contact with the scammer the next day, the woman was asked to withdraw another $40,000 and deliver it to an “associate” at the Roxy Theater in Dickson. Detectives, now involved, monitored the exchange and listened in as the scammer gave the woman a password for the drop-off.
That evening, officers observed 31-year-old Roshandice Nichelle McCullough of Killeen, Texas, arrive to collect the box containing the $40,000. After the woman handed it over using the agreed password, DCSO conducted a traffic stop, recovered the money, and arrested McCullough.
McCullough was charged with theft of property valued between $10,000 and $60,000. Her case is being bound over to the Dickson County grand jury. Investigators also noted McCullough faces a similar charge in Grayson County, Texas, from March 26.
She is currently held at the Dickson County Jail on an $80,000 bond.
Authorities remind the public to avoid clicking on suspicious links and to visit PayPal’s official site directly when handling account concerns.
