Disabled veteran speaks out after losing more than $170K in social media scam

NewsWorldAmericasUS Crime NewsDisabled veteran speaks out after losing more than $170K in social media scamSocial media investment scams account for roughly half of the $2.1 billion lost to financial fraud in the U.S. in 2025, according to federal officialsIo Dodds in San Francisco Tuesday 28 April 2026 01:56 BSTBookmarkBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":false,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b2966065","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/disabled-veteran-social-media-scams-b2966065.html","title":"Disabled veteran speaks out after losing more than $170K in social media scam"}}CloseMan dresses in bear costume to scratch up luxury cars in insurance scamThe latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekdayYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_Evening_Newsletter","regTitle":"Evening Headlines","subscriptionGroup":"us_evening_headlines","subscriptionGroupId":"4326e634-422a-4447-8e1e-604a937cd3b5","type":"daily_news","pathPrefix":["/us","/news/world/americas","/news/world/americas/crime"],"title":"The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday","mobileTitle":"Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/usEveningHeadlines1_1.png","label":"I would like to receive morning headlines Monday - Friday plus breaking news alerts by email","newsletterKey":"receiveEveningHeadlinesUSNews","regSourceSection":"US Crime News","regSourceMet...