A retired Johnston County man lost several thousand dollars in a family emergency scam. Authorities want the public to know about the ongoing scam so you won’t become a victim.
Recently, the 83 year-old victim was at home when he received a phone call from a person claiming his son had been arrested out-of-state for driving while impaired. They said they needed $6,000 in cash to make bail. He initially declined and they agreed to make bail at $5,000. The scammer told the victim to withdraw cash from his bank and conceal it inside a magazine before sending it priority mail to an address in New York.
After the scammer received the money they called again, this time demanding $4,500 to cover additional court costs and fees. The victim once again withdrew the money from the bank, placed the cash inside a magazine and sent it priority mail to another New York address.
Only later did he realize his son had not been arrested and he had been scammed.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, scammers call or send messages with a sense of urgency hoping you will send money immediately. The scams include relatives being in jail, a hospital, in trouble with someone, or needing to leave a foreign country.
They pull on your heartstrings tricking victims into sending money before they realize it is a scam.
The FTC encourages everyone to resist the urge to act immediately, no matter how dramatic the story. Verify the callers identity and ask questions a stranger couldn’t possibly answer. Call a phone number for your family member to check out their story.
The FTC says never send cash, gift cards or money transfers. Once the scammer gets the money, it’s gone.
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“Conceal the money in a magazine?!?!?!” C’mon people, be smarter! This is what a nation of sheeple looks like! #WakeUpAmerica
Talk to your parents and grandparents about these scams. Protect the elderly!
This was and elderly man. Give him a break. We do not know what his mind is like. It’s the scammers that need to rot in HE$L for taking advantage of our elderly.