Gravity
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,229
Jun 27, 2014 0:29:55 GMT
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Post by Gravity on May 12, 2016 18:51:24 GMT
There was a story in my local newspaper about a similar scam. They poor man lost $20,000.
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Post by Lexica on May 12, 2016 18:52:47 GMT
This is so sad. And there was nothing the police could do, given the fact that the scammers were still in contact to get the additional money? They couldn't be set up with a reversal sting of some sort? I hate hearing about elderly people being conned out of what little money they have left.
How do you suppose they target elderly people? Are they getting ahold of some list or AARP data or something? Or do they do a random dial and hang up if a younger person answers?
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Post by penguin on May 12, 2016 19:08:59 GMT
This happened to my elderly cousin. Fortunately, when they said, "this is your grandson" she asked, " which one?" (She only has one grandchild.) They hung up fast!
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Post by Outspoken on May 12, 2016 19:12:41 GMT
The same sort of thing happened with my grandmother, but it was simply a wire transfer. My "nephew" (her grandson) supposedly called her from Mexico needing to get out of jail. All for the low, low cost of $10,000. It ruined my grandmother financially and caused a lot of hard feelings with my aunt and her son (the grandson) because he didn't repay Grandma the $10,000. The crazy thing was that he really was in Mexico. We never did figure out how the scammers figured that one out. Grandma wasn't on any sort of social media. Am I clear in that you are saying that Grandma wanted grandson to repay her $10,000 that he didn't even scam her out of? |
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marimoose
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,282 
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Post by marimoose on May 12, 2016 19:16:11 GMT
I was just talking to my son a couple of hours ago about this scam. My stepson was in jail and did actually call his Grandma for help, even though he talks to none of us BUT in her case, it was indeed him. I said to my son that I could see her being scammed and she was simply lucky in this incidence.
I am so sorry that this happened to your MIL. I don't know what we can do to protect the people being scammed except to drill it into their heads to reach out to a family member before proceeding further. I have even drilled into my dh and kid's heads that they are never to respond to emails from companies. If they need to contact their bank they need to call them directly. It is th eonly safe way.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
May 14, 2024 12:08:05 GMT
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Post by Deleted on May 12, 2016 19:18:08 GMT
My father recently got a similar call to send money. Thankfully, he asked them a question that they couldn't answer, but he still called me to inquire whether my brother had gone on an overseas trip. Unfortunately, there's so much detailed information easily available on the internet that these scammers use it to their advantage.
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Post by shanni on May 12, 2016 19:27:44 GMT
The same sort of thing happened with my grandmother, but it was simply a wire transfer. My "nephew" (her grandson) supposedly called her from Mexico needing to get out of jail. All for the low, low cost of $10,000. It ruined my grandmother financially and caused a lot of hard feelings with my aunt and her son (the grandson) because he didn't repay Grandma the $10,000. The crazy thing was that he really was in Mexico. We never did figure out how the scammers figured that one out. Grandma wasn't on any sort of social media. Am I clear in that you are saying that Grandma wanted grandson to repay her $10,000 that he didn't even scam her out of? I was wondering the same thing! I don't know why the grandson should have to pay for it when he had nothing to do with it? |
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Post by Lexica on May 12, 2016 19:32:47 GMT
The same sort of thing happened with my grandmother, but it was simply a wire transfer. My "nephew" (her grandson) supposedly called her from Mexico needing to get out of jail. All for the low, low cost of $10,000. It ruined my grandmother financially and caused a lot of hard feelings with my aunt and her son (the grandson) because he didn't repay Grandma the $10,000. The crazy thing was that he really was in Mexico. We never did figure out how the scammers figured that one out. Grandma wasn't on any sort of social media. Am I clear in that you are saying that Grandma wanted grandson to repay her $10,000 that he didn't even scam her out of? You know, I could totally see some hopelessly drug addicted kid using this on his own grandparents, then claiming it wasn't him, it was a scammer. I wonder how many times that has actually happened, if at all? |
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Post by mikklynn on May 12, 2016 20:04:42 GMT
A gentleman at my parent's Parkinson's support group told the same story. He had gone to Walmart to send money (or something, I don't remember exactly) and the Walmart employees knew it was a scam. He said he was really mad at the employees initially! They convinced him to call another family member who confirmed it was a scam.
I agree - I hope there is special place in hell for these jerks.
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Post by Basket1lady on May 12, 2016 20:21:37 GMT
The same sort of thing happened with my grandmother, but it was simply a wire transfer. My "nephew" (her grandson) supposedly called her from Mexico needing to get out of jail. All for the low, low cost of $10,000. It ruined my grandmother financially and caused a lot of hard feelings with my aunt and her son (the grandson) because he didn't repay Grandma the $10,000. The crazy thing was that he really was in Mexico. We never did figure out how the scammers figured that one out. Grandma wasn't on any sort of social media. Am I clear in that you are saying that Grandma wanted grandson to repay her $10,000 that he didn't even scam her out of? No, it was my aunt who was mad. And it's not like my cousin (not nephew! Sorry about that mistake) had $10,000 sitting around. But my aunt often relied on my grandmother to bail her out financially time and time again. So really, auntie just wanted her son to give them both money. This all came to light about 5 years ago. I'd say it was about 10 years ago when Grandma got scammed. She had no money to live off and charged a lot of it to her CC. She ended up taking out a reverse mortgage on the house and robbed Peter to pay Paul for years before she told anyone what had happened. She was so embarrassed by it all. And I'd call Grandma a pretty smart cookie. She worked and my grandparents owned their own business where she took care of all the billing. She was no dummy. She just got duped. Especially when she knew for a fact that my cousin was on vacation in Mexico. And no, I don't think it was a set up on my cousin's part. Just dumb luck for the scammers, or they somehow knew my cousin or grandmother and set up the scam that way. |
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Post by Zee on May 12, 2016 20:26:27 GMT
This has been around for a while and one thing I like about my MIL being so active on fb is that she reads (and reposts, and tags, and likes, etc lolol) warnings about these things all the time. Too bad the first couple of clerks didn't ask her some questions.  |
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Rhondito
Pearl Clutcher
MississipPea
Posts: 4,662
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Post by Rhondito on May 12, 2016 20:55:21 GMT
This breaks my heart  |
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tuesdaysgone
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,832
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Post by tuesdaysgone on May 12, 2016 21:14:16 GMT
So sad for your MIL. My in-laws fell for some crazy scam where they sent someone money for a mystery package that was delivered to their address "by mistake." Fortunately, we got involved before they lost too much.
We have to watch over our parents/grand parents!
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CeeScraps
Pearl Clutcher
~~occupied entertaining my brain~~
Posts: 3,827
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Post by CeeScraps on May 12, 2016 21:57:17 GMT
I haven't read anything but the original post....
but you have the cards...has anyone contacted Apple to give them the card numbers? That may help track something down.
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Post by jamielynn on May 12, 2016 22:02:12 GMT
This same thing happened to mine recently. Fortunately we were there and told her it was a scam.
They told her go in a private room when she said we were there - and that they were really ashamed of the situation so not to tell us or anyone else.
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Post by Dori~Mama~Bear on May 12, 2016 22:30:02 GMT
That is so sad.
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Post by eversograceful1 on May 12, 2016 22:41:54 GMT
It happened to a friend of mines mother. So sad.
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Post by malibou on May 12, 2016 23:25:43 GMT
MEAN PEOPLE SO EFFING SUCK.
J
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Post by scrapsotime on May 12, 2016 23:36:50 GMT
My mother got a call like this and she thought it was from one of my sons. She was smart enough to question it because he said he didn't want me or dad to know. Mom knew better than to believe that because when my children got in any kind of trouble they didn't want grandma to know about it. She told them she was hanging up and calling me. She's never got another call like that since.
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schooner3
Junior Member
Refupea 755
Posts: 80
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Post by schooner3 on May 13, 2016 0:59:55 GMT
A similar thing happened with my dad not long after my mom died. Dad had dementia and was hard of hearing--Mom was his caregiver. I don't remember if dad tried to talk with them, but if he did, he would not have been able to hear well enough. They left a message on his machine, saying that my oldest dd (they used her name) was in jail in Canada. Dad called my brother since he couldn't understand the message. My brother listened to the message and called me to verify that my dd was not in Canada. I think my brother tried calling back, but nothing further came of it.
I always wondered how how they came up with dds name--maybe the obituary from mom? Luckily for us, by then my dad always called my brother before he did anything.
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Post by myboysnme on May 13, 2016 1:05:57 GMT
My mom is 81 but she's bailed my brother out so many times she knows the drill. Plus my mother would tell any of her grandchildren to call their parents not her. She's like that. My mother would hang up. Bail requires cold hard cash.
Sorry that happened but the entire ITunes thing sounds ridiculous. Still I will make sure to mention it to her. And I'm going to tell my boys don't ever call their grandmother if they are in trouble. Call me. I do think they know that though.
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Post by Tamhugh on May 13, 2016 1:13:55 GMT
This happened to my in-laws a few years ago. The person who called them said he was our son and that he was in NC on spring break and got arrested for something stupid and needed the money for legal fees, along with a plea to "please don't tell my parents". They had just wired the cash and realized it was better to call us and ask if he was away. We were able to stop the payment but they called my in-laws back screaming at them. My MIL was so embarrassed that they fell for it but I was just happy they got their money back.
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Post by mystuffandnat on May 13, 2016 1:23:50 GMT
My Aunt received a call like this...only they knew the grandson's name and town he was living in. He told her not to call his parents 'cuz you know how my Dad is" and knew where my Aunt was because they told her the three places in town where she could purchase the 'ransom' money. Luckily they were sitting at home waiting for an important call and didn't run out. But they did call the parents because they were so upset that something was going to happen to the grandson.
For several months now an "IRS Representative" has been calling my Dad - he LOVES playing with them...tells them to send the authorities/police he will be waiting...
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Post by Eddie-n-Harley on May 13, 2016 1:29:29 GMT
The same sort of thing happened with my grandmother, but it was simply a wire transfer. My "nephew" (her grandson) supposedly called her from Mexico needing to get out of jail. All for the low, low cost of $10,000. It ruined my grandmother financially and caused a lot of hard feelings with my aunt and her son (the grandson) because he didn't repay Grandma the $10,000. The crazy thing was that he really was in Mexico. We never did figure out how the scammers figured that one out. Grandma wasn't on any sort of social media. I'm pretty sure that was just random luck on the scammers' part. They frequently claim to be in Mexico... my guess is because a lot of college-aged grandkids head down there for spring break. |
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Post by OntarioScrapper on May 13, 2016 1:31:42 GMT
Oh they are getting tricky! Though why would anyone believe that the CRA wants iTunes cards in a form of payment?!?! Maybe the poor woman didn't understand what iTunes cards are? I got a message left on my voice mail where the guy first stated he from the CRA. Didn't address anyone in the household by name. Said you owe taxes. Said that you could end up in jail if you don't call this number right away and oh by the way I'm from the RCMP. He was a fast message but I caught it all and laughed my ass off at the whole thing. Though I guess he could work for the CRA AND the RCMP at the same time? The fact that he couldn't identify who he was calling was a big red flag. I googled and found out that this was a cold call. They only leave a message if you are NOT home and hope you freak out because you owe money and could go to jail. They then hope for you to call their number so they can get your name and scam you. I am assuming they think we may be older people that can get confused because we still have a land line. |
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tduby1
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,979
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Post by tduby1 on May 13, 2016 1:45:44 GMT
I really don't think they'd be able to get my parents- or anyone in my immediate family. We are all just too far up into each other's business in this family. (Not always good but in the case it would be advantageous.)
My MIL doesn't part with her money that easily- not even for a grandkid.
My FIL (who had his share of run ins with the law in his day) would want to help but wouldn't be able to clear even 50$ from his very tight budget.
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tduby1
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,979
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Post by tduby1 on May 13, 2016 1:47:51 GMT
Oh they are getting tricky! Though why would anyone believe that the CRA wants iTunes cards in a form of payment?!?! Maybe the poor woman didn't understand what iTunes cards are? That is likely the case. |
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Post by pmm on May 13, 2016 1:59:45 GMT
I feel so sorry for your MIL. I'll bet she feels so ashamed. I know my elderly aunt did when she told me she had been scammed. It's hard to imagine how someone could take advantage of an elderly person like that. Thank goodness for the CVS clerk. I hope he is commended for recognizing the situation. I never thought about it before, but all clerks in stores that sell gift certificates should be on the lookout for these types of situations. My daughter worked the customer service desk at WalMart for a while. They did have them look out for scams with MoneyGram and WalMart to WalMart. Gift cards were purchased at the registers, so I'm not sure what if any kind of training the cashiers were given. The clerks were able to refuse to do a transaction if they felt it was fraudulent. I know of one occasion where she had to tell a customer that things sounded fishy and she wouldn't process the transaction for them. She explained in detail to the person why it didn't seem right. I hope the person believed her and didn't try to go to another store. I too feel bad for your MIL. It's horrible that she was taken advantage of. |
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Post by shelby on May 13, 2016 2:54:46 GMT
I'm 81 so I guess I'm somehow on their target list. I received the grandma call a while ago. I might be old but I'm for sure not senile and I had a great time fooling with them. The call came from Canada and I knew that I didn't have a grandson there. I asked him if it was Steven (a made up name) and he said yes. I asked him if Heidi and the baby were with him (also made up names) He said they were at the hotel waiting for him to get out of jail. Then I told him that I had always said if one of my grandkids got themselves in trouble they would just have to get themselves back out of trouble. He begged me to help him just this one time because Heidi and the baby needed him to come and get them. When he said please send the $3000 as soon as I could, I told him I would send it to him just as soon as I could get the money out of the monopoly game. Which color bills did he want. Then I said whoever you are I just want you to know that I don't have a grandson named Steven and my grandson is only 8 years old. I will say that I heard a few choice cuss words that I haven't heard before and he slammed the phone down. It makes me sick that so many are duped though and these creeps take money from people that really don't have a lot of it.
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Post by iteach3rdgrade on May 13, 2016 3:18:44 GMT
The same sort of thing happened with my grandmother, but it was simply a wire transfer. My "nephew" (her grandson) supposedly called her from Mexico needing to get out of jail. All for the low, low cost of $10,000. It ruined my grandmother financially and caused a lot of hard feelings with my aunt and her son (the grandson) because he didn't repay Grandma the $10,000. The crazy thing was that he really was in Mexico. We never did figure out how the scammers figured that one out. Grandma wasn't on any sort of social media. Do you think they could have hacked an email? My mom was contacted by someone doing the same type of scam, but it was a grown man that "needed help." He was overseas and had some sad sob story. My mom didn't fall for it, but it seemed like it could have been true since the man was indeed overseas in the country they named. A hacked email would have supplied this information. |
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