Suburban Chicago man loses $69,000 to scammer using AI-generated U.S. Marshals badge - CBS News

A suburban Chicago man was scammed out of $69,000 after a con artist impersonating a U.S. Marshal convinced him his bank account was at risk. The scammer even sent the victim a photo of what appeared to be a U.S. Marshals badge, which authorities later confirmed was AI-generated.

What happened

The victim received a call from someone claiming to be from Apple, reporting fraudulent charges. He was then transferred to an individual impersonating a U.S. Marshal named Silas V. Darden, who claimed to offer a way to protect his assets. To appear legitimate, the scammer texted a photo of a badge bearing the name Silas V. Darden. Under the guise of protecting his money, the victim was instructed to transfer funds to two new accounts. He transferred $24,000 and then $45,000 from his Bank of America account to the accounts at Wells Fargo. The victim later discovered the accounts were not in his name and had been closed. The U.S. Marshals Service confirmed that the photo was AI-generated and that federal law enforcement would never request money in this way.