A couple's accounts were charged thousands of dollars

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Sept. 30, 2022 was a typical morning for Richard and Stephanie Fritz, until Stephanie checked her bank account.

"There was a withdrawal pending for $3,000," said Stephanie.

A withdrawal Stephanie said she knew she didn't authorize. She immediately called the bank and spoke with a representative, who said it appeared to be a transfer.

"I knew I hadn't set up any payments or any transfers to any other banks," said Stephanie.

While Stephanie was still on the phone, Richard checked his account with the same bank. There waiting for him was a $3,000 withdrawal pending.

The dual withdrawals prompted the pair to go to the bank, where they learned that a $3,000 withdrawal was also pending on their third account. So, the bank made the accounts dormant.

Stephanie said she was assured that the payments didn't go through. But weeks later, she saw that $3,000 had in fact been charged to one of the accounts. Stephanie called the bank and spoke with a manager.

"[She said] there had been this third-party investigator that the bank works through, and there was enough evidence that showed that somehow I compromised my banking information," said Stephanie. "Whether I did it knowingly or unknowingly, it was falling back onto us."

But Stephanie insisted it was fraud.

"I never thought that our accounts could be compromised. I never thought that could happen."

Stephanie filed a report with police, and the Federal Trade Commission, and continued to question the bank.

"They haven't provided us anything," said Stephanie.

That's when she called Better Call 4. I reached out to the bank's branch manager, as well as the chairman & CEO, president, and chief information officer.

That same day, the chief marketing officer sent me a message saying, "We have reached out to the customer to discuss the situation with them and ensure that our response reflects that commitment."

Then, on Jan. 4, Stephanie called me to say that the bank refunded their money.

Again, the bank said it couldn't discuss specifics due to privacy, but Stephanie said when she spoke with police, an officer told her the issue was likely due to a breach with her debit card or with the bank.

Stephanie said she closed those accounts, and the couple are now banking with another institution.