Man blessed with new truck and 4-wheeler to help search for his wife in western NC
WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA (WTVD) -- New details into an ABC11 Troubleshooter investigation where a scam took nearly $40,000 from a hurricane Helene victim whose wife died in the storm.
While this scam took thousands of Rod Ashby's money what happened after we warned you about the scam is giving him faith that there is still so much good out there. His daughter Ansley Ashby, Rod's daughter said, "They found the story, and they reached out, and they're like, what can we do to help him? Offers of help is what Ansley says came in after hearing the heartbreak her dad went through.
ABC11 first told you about the Ashby's after Hurricane Helene hit Rod and his wife, Kim Ashby's mountain home in western North Carolina. Flood waters ripped their home off its foundation, the couple inside, holding onto each other until they hit a tree and got separated. Rod made it to safety; two months after Helene, Kim is officially still missing.
The flood waters also destroyed Rod's truck. To get back to the mountains to search for Kim, he went online and thought he found the perfect used truck on a website. But after wiring the $38,900 to a company that claimed to be a Colorado car business, he learned it was all a scam, his money gone. Ansley added, "I think it was just like another gut punch to him, of, ok, now this went wrong too, and now this set me back even further."
ABC11 Troubleshooter Diane Wilson did contact both Rod's bank and the bank the money was wired to, and also the police. They all said they were investigating. Police confirmed the website where Rod found the truck for sale was impersonating a legit Colorado car dealership. The owner of that legitimate car dealership told me Rod was not alone, as he heard from dozens of others also scammed like Rod, and he was also working with authorities.
After our story, Ansley says Rod got the good news from his bank that they forgave the loan he took out to pay for the truck. Plus she says the bank the money was wired to was able to recover two-thirds of the lost money from the scammer's account. Then even more good news as one group reached out wanting to give Rod a truck so he could get back to the mountains of North Carolina, and then another big donation.
"They actually got him a new 4-wheeler to replace the one he had lost up there. He will have his own setup to go back up to the mountains and keep looking. So he's really excited," Ansley said.
Ansley says her dad is so thankful for the generosity, "This has really proven that there are so many kind people out there so that really want to help and just having that reassurance it's just amazing at a time like this, and just having a community." With the truck and 4-wheeler, Ansley says Rod plans to get back to the mountains to help in the search for his wife. Ansley said there are amazing crews there that continue to try and recover anyone still missing. The family did have a celebration of life for Kim last month.
As for that website where Rod got scammed, ABC11 Troubleshooter Diane Wilson tried to reach out multiple ways to the scammer, but the website is no longer working, emails came back as undeliverable, and their phone just rings as busy. So hopefully no one else will get scammed.
