07/29/2025
A person with People’s Republic of China nationality, showing a U. S. address of West Covina, California, has been arrested on a felony theft charge filed in Baxter County as a result of an investigation initiated by the Sheriff’s Criminal Investigation Division.
On May 23rd, based upon information provided by the Mountain Home Police Department, Sheriff’s Investigator Sgt. Scott Thrasher went to an address in rural Mountain Home to speak with an 86 year old lady who was the purported victim of a scam and theft. This lady reported that she had been received a message on her computer screen on or about February 28th advising her to call Microsoft and provided a phone number. The lady called the number believing that she was legitimately calling Microsoft regarding her malfunctioning computer. The man she spoke with represented himself to be an employee of Microsoft in Redmond, Washington with the “Identity Theft Department”. The lady spoke with this man several times between February 28th and March 13th. The man, who called himself “Jack”, used this time to gain the lady’s trust and isolate her from others in the community who might have been able to help her. By March 13th, he had convinced the lady that her computer problems were caused by hackers who were attempting to steal her money.
The man, “Jack”, convinced the lady that her money would only be safe if it was placed in the Federal Reserve Bank. He convinced her to close her local savings account and draw out all the money in cash, which was $33,000. He then convinced her that a courier from the Federal Reserve would pick up the cash from her residence. The cash was handed over to the supposed courier on the morning of March 17th using a fake codeword that “Jack” had contrived.
“Jack” stayed in contact with the lady over the next few weeks. He eventually convinced her to liquidate an investment account and withdraw another $38,000 in cash, which was subsequently handed over to a supposed courier on May 16th.
On June 10th, Sheriff’s Investigator Sgt. Thrasher was made aware of a similar case in the Eureka Springs/Holiday Island area of Carroll County, Arkansas. That case was being investigated by the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office. During the course of that investigations, a sting operation had been arranged for a cash pick-up in Carroll County, and the supposed courier had been arrested in the act of picking up the cash on or about May 22nd. The courier was identified at that time as WENYAN SONG, an apparent resident of California.
Arkansas authorities then began working with Investigators from the United States Department of Homeland Security to obtain vehicle rental information associated with the vehicle SONG was driving, and a search warrant was obtained to be directed to the vehicle rental company. GPS data points were also obtained to indicate the movements of the vehicle. These included information indicating that the vehicle was in the vicinity of the Baxter County victim’s residence on the dates she reported that the “courier” had picked up her cash.
A bench warrant was issued by the Baxter County Circuit Court on July 10, 2025 for the arrest of WENYAN SONG, 31 years of age, who was in federal DHS-ICE custody at the time. SONG was picked up yesterday from ICE custody in Little Rock, Arkansas and transported to the Baxter County Detention Center where he was booked on a charge of:
THEFT OF PROPERTY – Felony
WENYAN SONG, (alternately shown as WENYUAN SONG) is being held in lieu of $75,000 cash only bond. He is scheduled to appear before the Circuit Court to answer on August 11th. He has holds placed by the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office and an immigration hold for ICE.