Victim of Fraud

My friend Lydia is the owner of Hidden Oasis salon in Fairfax Station, Virginia. In November 2021, she was the victim of bank and wire fraud. The entirety of her business account--$60,000--was stolen in a matter of hours. Despite alerting the bank of the unauthorized wire transfers almost immediately, they were only able to "find" $5,000 and have told her there is nothing they can do to help her recover the remaining funds.

Lydia has retained legal counsel but her financial institution, Truist, has used every tool at their disposal to delay mediation hearings and any possible settlement. This is despicable from a company who reported $1.3 BILLION profit in the most recent financial quarter.

Sadly, Lydia has reached the end of her personal savings and is now facing the very real possibility of having to close the business she has owned and operated for 12 years. The expectation is that Truist will continue to delay and Lydia cannot make business decisions--signing a new lease, replacing staff who have recently left--without more clarity about her financial future.

I know times are difficult for many people right now and I hate to make this ask, but a small local business like Hidden Oasis that gives generously to local schools and community organizations, is the kind of place we cannot afford to lose. Lydia is aware of this fundraiser but she did not ask me to do it. In addition to a monetary donation, if you have any insight about fraud cases or a way to amplify this and pressure Truist to do the right thing, that would be greatly appreciated as well.

Thank you!

Rachel Vindman