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FBI: Money-for-miner request bogusAgency warns computer users to investigate before donating
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- An e-mail seeking financial aid for Randy McCloy Jr., the sole survivor of a West Virginia mine explosion that killed 12, is a fraud, the FBI said Wednesday. "The e-mail falsely claims to be authored by a physician at the hospital where the survivor is currently receiving medical attention. It describes the condition of the survivor and the financial assistance that is needed for a full recovery," the FBI said in a written statement. McCloy, 26, is in critical condition at Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia. (Watch doctors explain McCloy's long road to recovery -- 1:57) At least one case of alleged fraud is being investigated, an FBI official said, adding that he didn't know how many people have reported receiving the solicitation or when the FBI found out about it. "As was learned after the tragic events of 9/11/01, the tsunami disaster, and more recently with Hurricane Katrina, unscrupulous cybercriminals have shown the desire and means to exploit human emotion by attempting to defraud the public when they are perceived to be most vulnerable," the FBI warned. The FBI said it was trying to find the source of the fraudulent request. After Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast on August 29, there were numerous bogus solicitations for money, which several agencies aggressively addressed, the FBI said, urging computer users to investigate the legitimacy of a cause before donating money. People can report fraudulent e-mails asking for donations to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov. 
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