Authorities in Baxter County have arrested 31-year-old Wenyan Song — also known as Wenyuan Song — on a felony theft charge. Song, who showed a U.S. address in West Covina, California, is accused of impersonating a Microsoft employee and orchestrating an elaborate scam that ultimately cost a local woman over $70,000.
Investigators say it all began on February 28th, when the victim, an 86-year-old woman living near Mountain Home, received a suspicious pop-up message on her computer, urging her to call Microsoft. The man on the other end identified himself only as “Jack” and claimed to work in Microsoft’s so-called Identity Theft Department.
Over the next two weeks, “Jack” allegedly gained the woman’s trust — isolating her from friends and family and convincing her she was the target of hackers. By mid-March, she was persuaded to withdraw $33,000 in cash and hand it over to a man claiming to be a Federal Reserve courier.
The scam didn’t stop there. Authorities say the victim was contacted again in May and convinced to withdraw another $38,000 — again handing it over to a fake courier.
A breakthrough came when a similar case surfaced in Carroll County, Arkansas. A sting operation there led to the arrest of the same alleged courier: Wenyan Song. Federal agents and local deputies then tracked rental car GPS data, which placed Song at the victim’s Baxter County residence on the dates she reported.
A bench warrant was issued earlier this month, and Song — already in federal custody — was transferred to the Baxter County Detention Center on Tuesday. He’s being held on a felony theft of property charge, with bond set at $75,000 cash only.
Song also faces additional holds from Carroll County authorities and federal immigration officials. He’s scheduled to appear in Circuit Court on August 11th.
