SUNSET VALLEY, Texas — Authorities in Sunset Valley are searching for a suspect who allegedly scammed the city out of around $12,000 in 2023.
According to police, someone claiming to be an event planner for the Sunset Valley ARTFEST spoofed the real event planner's email address and reached out to the city for payment.
However, when the real event planner told the city she hadn't received payment, the city's financial staff learned they had been scammed. The event planner revealed to the city she was having problems after having her identity stolen. She also asked the city why they wired the payment when they always paid by check.
After further investigation, the city discovered they paid someone pretending to be the event planner who created a fake email account.
According to Sunset Valley police, the scam appeared to be more sophisticated than most. Police also said they have an arrest warrant, but that their suspect lives out of state.
Meanwhile, city officials have contacted Wells Fargo about the incident to recover the funds, but say it's unknown if the funds can be recovered.