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Post by Spongemom Scrappants on Feb 8, 2015 1:33:25 GMT
Seeing the thread about the possible credit card scam reminded me to post this here.
On Tuesday morning while at work, I got a call from my ex-husband telling me our oldest son was in jail in another city and had called his parents to bail him out. He reported they were in tears and called him for help in trying to get the money together to post bail. It was my son's day off and he has friends in that area so we weren't entirely sure it hadn't happened.
I left work to make some calls and see if I needed to drive to that city to attempt to try to help my son. On the way home, I called my mama to be sure she had not also been called and to tell her not to do ANYTHING without calling me first. She said, "Oh, well I talked to *son* this morning and he's off today so he's coming over later so I can make him lunch while he does his laundry." (He doesn't have a washer/dryer in his apartment.) I quizzed her repeatedly to be sure of what she was saying. Then I called that son who answered his phone with, "Hey mom, what's up?"
Long story short, my ex-in-laws were being scammed. The caller said, "This is your oldest grandson." And then explained that he'd been arrested for drug possession but couldn't prove he was innocent until he got out of jail. He said bail has been set at $25,000 but $2,500 would get him out. They could either give credit card info or their checking account routing/account numbers!
We got everyone up-to-date and felt relieved that my ex-in-laws had not fallen for the scam. They called their local police to report it but were told it was next to impossible to ever find the people responsible. Interestingly, the local news had a story that night about another elderly couple that did fall for a scam about their grandchild.
I'm posting this to encourage you all to talk to family members about this type of crime. We know of another grandmother who had this tried on them as well. So many elderly are prime targets for emotional appeals like this if they think it involves their grandchild. Please make sure that any grandparents in your family know about this scam and have a plan for what to do if they receive this type of call.
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Post by hop2 on Feb 8, 2015 1:35:45 GMT
Good PSA
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Deleted
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Nov 1, 2024 4:24:57 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2015 1:37:36 GMT
Glad no one in your family fell for it. I think I remember hearing about this being done to parents, too.
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Post by cakediva on Feb 8, 2015 1:38:32 GMT
The same thing happened to my Step-dad. Except he actually wired money. The person on the phone claimed to be his son. Told him to just wire the money and not tell anybody. So he did, but felt uncomfortable after, and called his son's cell. His son answered and said he was on the way to the cottage!
He called the number that the "son" had called from and got the "lawyer" again, who said they would send the money back with XXX Post office number. Mom was on her cell calling the post office - no such numbers existed. So he called the Western Union office and she said the funds hadn't been picked up yet, did he want it back?
He called the police but wasn't going to tell any of us. But they advised him to spread the word. By the time the police tracked the number it was dead and useless of course.
Crazy!
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freebird
Drama Llama
'cause I'm free as a bird now
Posts: 6,927 
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Post by freebird on Feb 8, 2015 1:39:24 GMT
That happened to my mom a few years ago and she didn't fall for it. When she said "you sound to old to be grandson (mine) they bolted.
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GiantsFan
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,486
Site Supporter
Jun 27, 2014 14:44:56 GMT
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Post by GiantsFan on Feb 8, 2015 1:40:30 GMT
Thanks for the PSA. My parents know not to give out any information over the phone, but it's always to good to have a reminder.
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Post by Spongemom Scrappants on Feb 8, 2015 1:48:14 GMT
Oh my goodness. It's amazing when something like this happens to you and you begin to hear how many others have experienced it as well. I'm glad he did finally tell everyone. It's only by spreading the word that we can hope to educate people about scams like this.
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Post by padresfan619 on Feb 8, 2015 1:49:08 GMT
This is a very common scam among the elderly. Someone will call and say "Guess who this is?!" and once they have a name it all unravels from there. It was good that you were able to get it all figured out before any one lost any money.
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mallie
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,253
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Post by mallie on Feb 8, 2015 1:54:27 GMT
Long story short, my ex-in-laws were being scammed. The caller said, "This is your oldest grandson." And then explained that he'd been arrested for drug possession but couldn't prove he was innocent until he got out of jail. He said bail has been set at $25,000 but $2,500 would get him out. They could either give credit card info or their checking account routing/account numbers! We got everyone up-to-date and felt relieved that my ex-in-laws had not fallen for the scam. They called their local police to report it but were told it was next to impossible to ever find the people responsible. Interestingly, the local news had a story that night about another elderly couple that did fall for a scam about their grandchild. I'm posting this to encourage you all to talk to family members about this type of crime. We know of another grandmother who had this tried on them as well. So many elderly are prime targets for emotional appeals like this if they think it involves their grandchild. Please make sure that any grandparents in your family know about this scam and have a plan for what to do if they receive this type of call. Exact same call came to my coworker's parents on Wednesday. Luckily they thought to call her first to check. She immediately called her son... who was at home in bed. |
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Post by pjaye on Feb 8, 2015 1:55:25 GMT
Just shaking my head, there are some people who are a total waste of space in this world.
What a disgusting thing to do to someone.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Nov 1, 2024 4:24:57 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2015 2:01:32 GMT
Thanks for the PSA. I've passed it on to those I know who might get such a call and be too worried to immediately think rationally.
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akathy
What's For Dinner?
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Posts: 4,546
Location: North Dakota
Jun 25, 2014 22:56:55 GMT
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Post by akathy on Feb 8, 2015 2:27:46 GMT
My Mom got a call like that. After they told her it was her grandson she said, "Nathan?" Of course they took it from there. Thankfully she questioned him about not sounding like Nathan. He claimed he had a cold. Thankfully she wasn't gullible enough to believe it but I can see how this kind of scam could happen.
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Post by Spongemom Scrappants on Feb 8, 2015 2:29:07 GMT
One of life's great mysteries for me is how the world is both an achingly wonderful place and a cesspool for assholes all at the same time.
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Post by mztfied on Feb 8, 2015 3:04:36 GMT
I got this very same call about a year ago. I knew instantly that it was not my grandson. So I had just a tiny bit of fun with it.
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Post by anxiousmom on Feb 8, 2015 3:21:15 GMT
My parents wouldn't fall for it...mostly because they are old school die-hards who believe in letting people deal with the consequences of their own actions. They would suggest politely that the child in question would be well served to spend the night in the hoosegow. The next call would be to me asking why the kid didn't call any one of the number of attorneys in the family instead of them. They are incredibly loving, but a bit old school.  |
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Post by lurkingsince2001 on Feb 8, 2015 3:25:09 GMT
How do they always seem to know they are calling someone with grandkids? Because the person answering sounds older? Has anyone heard of the caller changing their scam to a child instead of grandchild? It just seems like the story always goes, "Grandma!" right away. Not every old person has grandkids or is on good terms with them. Are the scammers dialing random numbers and then tailoring their story based on something they are "reading" from the person answering? Or are they getting these numbers from somewhere geared towards older people, like AARP?
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Post by fkawitchypea on Feb 8, 2015 3:27:55 GMT
This happened to someone I work with. Her grandparents received a call from someone pretending to be a friend of my co-worker stating that they were Vegas and she got arrested and needed bail money. The grandmother went to the local pharmacy to Western Union the money. She told the clerk the story (because she had not clue what Western Union was or how to send money). The clerk told her that she should probably call family to verify the story. My co-worker happened to speak to her mother on her way into work that day and she knew she couldn't possible have run off to Vegas in that time, not to mention it was completely out of character for her. Thank goodness for that attentive clerk!
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Post by anonrefugee on Feb 8, 2015 3:42:29 GMT
Great PSA! A neighbor' smother was taken for $2000. They think the scammer used info from an obituary to add detail to the call from her " granddaughter".
My parents received a similar call, but my father quickly recognized the caller used the wrong papa/ grandpa/ granddad nickname in the convo. He was able to fluster the scammer after that. Go Dad!
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Deleted
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Nov 1, 2024 4:24:57 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2015 3:45:31 GMT
That happened a few weeks ago to my co-workers Grandma. Fortuntly grandma felt weird about the call and didn't follow through with it.
People who mess with the elderly suck.
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Post by pb on Feb 8, 2015 4:20:04 GMT
My mom and dad got a call like that this fall and my dad was all prepared to give them the money. Luckily my brother was there at the time and had the presence of mind to text my kid. Now both boys know to use their pet name for my dad when calling. No scammer will know this and it made my parents feel better to have some assurance.
It is nice to know that my dad will bail out the kids but I would prefer it be a legitimate reason.
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TheOtherMeg
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Jun 25, 2014 20:58:14 GMT
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Post by TheOtherMeg on Feb 8, 2015 4:53:42 GMT
My FIL got this call regarding one of my sons. FIL was very upset because he knew something was fishy about the situation (scammer should have chosen a different son/grandson if he wanted anyone to think bail money was needed!), but I assured him that it was a scam. Anything involving sending a Western Union usually is. And besides, the son in question is in the military. If he was in that kind of trouble, I doubt he'd be allowed to call his grandpa for bail!
FIL was upset that the scammer knew the name of his grandson. It think that upset him as much as anything. Oh, those evil interwebs!
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moodyblue
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Jun 26, 2014 21:07:23 GMT
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Post by moodyblue on Feb 8, 2015 5:02:35 GMT
My mother got a call like this, with a young male voice calling her grandma.
My mother only has step-grandchildren and they don't call her grandma and the step-great-grandchildren are way too young. This guy even finally said something like "it's Michael" when she didn't respond the way he wanted. She thought she wasn't hearing what he was saying or that it was a wrong number, so kept asking him who he was or who he was calling. He hung up fast when she realized what was happening and said that she doesn't have a grandson named Michael.
Luckily, also, my mom is still mentally sharp in her mid-80s and had heard about these scams on TV.
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Post by hennybutton on Feb 8, 2015 5:05:03 GMT
How do they always seem to know they are calling someone with grandkids? Because the person answering sounds older? Has anyone heard of the caller changing their scam to a child instead of grandchild? It just seems like the story always goes, "Grandma!" right away. Not every old person has grandkids or is on good terms with them. Are the scammers dialing random numbers and then tailoring their story based on something they are "reading" from the person answering? Or are they getting these numbers from somewhere geared towards older people, like AARP? My guess is that they're calling random numbers, if someone sounds old enough to be a grandparent, then they say "Grandma?" or whatever. If not, they hang up. If the person in question doesn't have an older grandchild or a grandchild of the right gender, then it's just a matter of either the caller hanging up or being informed they have a wrong number. Who would even think twice about a wrong number? My mom actually got one of these calls. They guy said something like, "Grandma? Do you know who this is?" Out of four grandchildren, my son is the only grandson. Mom said that the guy sounded like my son. He told her that he had been arrested in Mexico and needed money to get out. She told him to call back. Then, she called me. My son was in school, so it couldn't have been him. I told her that it was a common scam and to contact the police. I had seen an article in the paper about it a couple of years earlier. |
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Post by bothmykidsrbrats on Feb 8, 2015 5:23:53 GMT
My DMIL got a call about 2 weeks ago from "her grandson". He said.. Hey Grandma it's me, I got in a little fender bender, and I can't afford for my insurance to go up, so I need $800 to get the other guys car fixed. The guy needs the money by tomorrow, or he's calling my insurance. MIL just laughed, told him none of her grand kids were old enough to drive, and to get a job. She said a lot of her lady friends have received "emergency" calls for money. Some callers even knew their grandchild's name. So scary and sad for our seniors.
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Post by 950nancy on Feb 8, 2015 5:29:01 GMT
I think I would be so pissed about the drug situation I wouldn't send money. I don't trust anyone I don't know that calls me. I haven't had anything like this happen, but I am always on the defense about crazy situations.
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Post by Scrapper100 on Feb 8, 2015 5:29:51 GMT
This happened to my DHs aunt and she fell for. The person called her grandmother not aunt but she still fell for it. He told her that he was my DH and in Vegas and to not tell me, seriously my hubby would so not be going out of town without me knowing. I feel bad for her but obviously enough people fall for this because they have been doing this same scam for years. I think I heard about it years ago on 2Ps. I think she lost $2500 and it was wired or on a gift card type thing something weird and there was no way to trace it or get it back.
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Post by gale w on Feb 8, 2015 9:47:41 GMT
My MIL got one of these calls a few months ago. She knew right away that it wasn't her grandson but I can imagine a lot of people get confused enough by it to fall for it.  |
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anniebygaslight
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Jun 28, 2014 14:08:19 GMT
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Post by anniebygaslight on Feb 8, 2015 10:22:19 GMT
This was happening a few years ago.
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Post by Spongemom Scrappants on Feb 8, 2015 13:22:51 GMT
Wow... amazing how prevalent this is. Mean people suck.
Thank you all for sharing your stories. I know this isn't a new phenomenon, but I think it never hurts to remind people that stuff like this goes on. I'm sorry for all the ones who fell for it. My husband tells me I am such a skeptic, the danger is I won't help when it's legitimate. Lol. I hope that's not true either!
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Post by mikklynn on Feb 8, 2015 13:36:49 GMT
My parent's friend got a call like this a few years ago. Luckily, the bank knew about the scam and would not let him transfer or wire money. He got really upset with the bank, but they worked with him to get in touch with family to confirm it was not true.
He was brave enough to stand up at their Golden Age meeting to warn others.
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