(HALDIMAND COUNTY, ON.) – Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) Haldimand County detachment is investigating a Grandparent scam at a McKenzie Road, Caledonia, Haldimand County, ON address.
On Wednesday May 27th, 2015 at approximately 7:15 pm Police were called the McKenzie Road address to investigate a grandparent scam which involved approximately $20,000 dollars.
Investigation has thus revealed that on Thursday May 21st, 2015 an elderly couple in their late 80’s and early 90’s received a telephone call from an upset sounding male claiming to be their grandson. The male advised that he was involved in a collision and was facing criminal charges and requested money for bail. The money was sent via a money transfer company.
On Monday May 25th, 2015 the couple received another call from the grandson’s supposed lawyer requesting another sum of money to pay for medical expenses. This time they were instructed to send cash via a courier service to a Quebec address which they did.
On Tuesday May 26th, 2015 again another call was received from the supposed grandson requesting money to pay for funeral expenses of the other driver who died as a result of injuries sustained in the collision. If the money wasn’t paid he would be charged with Involuntary Manslaughter. Once again the elderly couple sent the money via a courier service to a Quebec address.
Later that same day they contacted their grandson to check on his progress when they found that they had been scammed.
The loss is approximately $20,000 dollars.
Anyone with information regarding this incident should immediately contact the Ontario Provincial Police at 1 – 888 – 310 -1122. Should you wish to remain anonymous, you may call Crime Stoppers at 1 – 800 – 222 – TIPS (8477) or leave an anonymous online message at www.helpsolvecrime.com where you may be eligible to receive a cash reward of up to $2000.
Each year, emergency scam artists contact thousands of citizens and many people get scammed in their rush to help. Many victims are hesitant to say ‘no’ or to hang up on someone on the phone, which makes them easy targets for criminals to access substantial sums of money.
In 2014, five (5) per cent of all complaints received by the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre were victims of the “Emergency Scam” — sometimes referred to as the “Grandparent Scam”. Of those 1,977 complaints, 737 people were identified as victims who reported a total loss of more than $2.4 million.
In the typical emergency scam, the victim will receive a frantic phone call from someone claiming to be a grandchild or loved one. The caller will explain that they are involved in some sort of mishap or are having trouble returning from a foreign country and need money right away.
Scammers know how to gather your personal information for criminal means. They use phony social media accounts to find real names, real interests, real phone numbers and when you are going to be home or away. They’ll even call in the middle of the night to take advantage of the confusion caused by awaking suddenly with the expectation its bad news at that hour. Most of all, they rely upon the victim’s desire to help their loved ones, whatever the cost.
Be aware of some warning signs:
· Urgency– The scammer always makes the request sound very urgent, which may cause the victim to not verify the story.
· Fear– The scammer plays on the victim’s emotions by generating a sense of fear. For instance they may say, “I am scared and I need help from you.”
· Secrecy– The scammer pleads with the victim not to tell anyone about the situation, such as, “Please don’t tell Dad, he would be so mad.”
· Request for Money Transfer– Money is usually requested to be sent by a money transfer company such as Money Gram, Western Union or even through your own bank institution.
To avoid becoming a victim, police advise you to first check with another family member or trusted friend to verify the information BEFORE sending money or providing credit card information by phone or e-mail. It is vitally important that the incident be reported every time it occurs, to allow police to investigate and prevent others from becoming victims.
FRAUD…Recognize it…Report it…Stop it.
