Greg's Corner

The true cost of the grandparent scam

We often talk about scams but usually not the scammers themselves. That’s because many scammers operate from overseas and are difficult to prosecute. However, that’s not to say that there aren’t domestic scammer because there are.

Two men from Florida recently pleaded guilty to running a grandparent scam operation that netted them $1 million. As its name implies, the grandparent scam specifically targets the elderly. The scammer will call their victims and create a scenario where one of the victim’s grandchildren are in some kind of trouble. Typically, the scammers will pretend to be the grandchild and say that they need bail money. The scammers will then instruct their victims where they can send money, usually in some unorthodox form like gift cards.

The two Florida men were said to have posed as police officers and lawyers to convince their victims to send them money. They would then have their victims send packages of cash to vacant properties in a number of states up and down the East Coast. Just between the two men, they were able to collect $1 million from 28 victims. That’s averages out to approximately $36,000 per victim. We’re sure that to many of those victims that money was probably their life savings. It just shows how relatively easy it is for just two scammers to amass seven figures like that.

Both men are looking at 20-year sentences when they’re sentenced next year.

Again, if you or someone you know receives one of these phone calls, it’s best to hang up and contact the person the scammers are claiming to be. Scammers will try to pressure you into staying on the line, however, if someone is truly in a legal jam, it’s not going to make matters worse if you make additional calls to verify their story.

Again, we ask that if you know an elderly person or couple who live alone and do not have access to the internet, please let them know about this scam.