WASHINGTON — A computer crash and a pop up message led to a D.C. woman losing out on more than $640,000 through gold coins and wire transfers, the Metropolitan Police Department said on Wednesday.

A man and woman from California -- Amruth Vaka, 27, and Saloni Shaikh, 28 -- were arrested for allegedly scamming a D.C. woman, while masquerading as customer service. The two were charged with first-degree fraud.

MPD Commander Kevin Kentish of the Criminal Investigations Division said it may have taken the woman a year to finally catch onto what was happening and alert police. Officers were then able to catch the man and woman trying to defraud an additional $200,000.

Police described the scam as originating from a phony computer virus. The victim's computer had apparently crashed and flash

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