SCAMS AND FRAUD — THE ELDERLY – Part 2
In my last blog, I talked about why the elderly are prime targets for scams or fraud.
In this segment, I’ll talk about some of the common frauds perpetrated, and share personal stories of how some of my friends and loved ones were affected by criminals.
Most of us have received a phone call from someone claiming to be the IRS and that we owe back taxes, and if we don’t send money immediately, a warrant will be issued, and we’ll be arrested. Or, they may say you have a refund and try to trick you into sharing private information. The scammer demands the victim to send cash, usually through a wire transfer, gift card, or prepaid debit card. They can also use “robo-calls” or send a phishing email. They can alter caller ID number to make it look like it’s the IRS calling.
Most of us know these contacts are false and hang up. However, a lot of elderly people fall for the scams.
I had an elderly friend, I’ll call her Mary. She had an elder friend named Doug. Her friend Doug had been taken in by scammers and he lost everything—over $250,000. When Doug was out of money, the scammers got aggressive and mean, and asked him if there was someone else who could loan him money. He said maybe his friend Mary. The scammers asked for Mary’s phone number and called her.
Mary was in her late 80’s. She was still fairly strong mentally, but she was no match for the scammers. They got her address and used online maps and photographs to describe her house and property, threatening her that they would come and get her if she didn’t pay them money. They would call her as often as twenty times a day. Although she was told not to answer or engage with them, she thought she could outsmart them. When the calls became too much, she called me. Ultimately, I convinced her she had to change her phone number. She didn’t want to do it because she’d had the same number for over forty-five years. She eventually realized that changing her number was the only way out. While the scammers didn’t get any money from her (that I’m aware of) they disrupted her life for at least eight months.
I just got this information a few days ago—and I don’t believe it’s exclusively targeting the elderly—they could be targeting anyone. In my state (Idaho) scammers are now targeting victims via the US mail. The attorney general said: “These mailings are particularly concerning because they show scammers are researching actual tax records and then tailoring their scam attempts specific to individuals.
If there’s ever any reason you question the legitimacy of a tax document you receive in the mail, call tax officials—NOT using the phone numbers provided on the mailing. Be especially suspicious of anything that aggressively demands payment in a short amount of time.” Be aware these mailings looked official and threatened to take the recipient’s Social Security benefits, wages, bank accounts, and federal tax refunds. The mailer demanded payment of more than $9,600. It stated a working phone number that was answered by a man identifying himself as a representative of “the American Tax Group.”
Another scam can be performed by tradespeople. Something goes wrong with the house, the car, or an appliance. A repairperson agrees to fix the problem but demands payment up front. Once they start the work, they “find” a more serious problem with a more expensive solution.
In a different type of fraud, the crooks may pose as a Medicare representative to get older folks to give them their personal information, or they will provide bogus services for elderly people at makeshift mobile clinics, then use the personal information the victim provides to bill Medicare and pocket the money.
A long-running and famous scam is the pigeon drop. In a typical pigeon drop, two suspects approach an older person—often in a shopping area or near an ATM machine. They claim they’ve just found a wallet containing a large amount of money. One suspect volunteers to check with and accountant or an attorney to get advice on what to do with the found money. The suspect returns and says they’ve found out the money came from an illegal source such as gambling or narcotics.
The scammers offer to split the money, but only after the elderly person shows “good faith” by producing money of their own. After the senior has given the suspects their own money, the crooks send the senior to the accountant/attorney to collect the promised share of the money. Of course, there is no accountant and/or attorney and the suspects have disappeared.
In another scam, a scammer will wait in in a parking lot for an elderly person to get in their car and back out of a paring space. The crook pretends to get hit by the senior. The elderly person is usually shocked, apologetic, and flustered. The scammer threatens to call the police and the senior’s insurance company…but if the senior is willing to give them cash to cover the medical expenses, they can pretend it never happened.
Believe it or not, this scam happened to one of my doctors. He related his story when I was there for my yearly exam. He was a kind, elderly man, and it was easy for me to see how the scammer had picked the perfect victim. Worse yet, this occurred in the area where I was working as a police officer. My poor doctor was beside himself, but grateful he’d only lost $20.
In my next blog, I’ll relate some more scams and who perpetrates them. I think you’ll find some of the information surprising.
Until next time,
Remain vigilant
KMA 367
