Abbotsford – And how low can someone go ……..
While AbbyPD is proud of its many civilian staff members who work tirelessly alongside members to keep our community safe. It was through their work analyzing data that a concerning trend was brought to light.
Deemed “Grandparent Scams,” analysts have noticed a trend of scammers posing as lawyers targeting seniors between the ages of 72-92 years old.
The suspect(s) contact victims, posing as lawyers, suggesting their family member had been in an accident and required funds to pay for damages. In other cases, the suspect(s) posed as law enforcement, suggesting their family member was being held in jail pending payment for their bail.
Nine cases of grandparent scams have been reported between February of this year and November 2023. Five of these cases resulted in a total of $24,575.00 in losses.
AbbyPD are informing the public to create awareness of this specific type of scam, especially with the holiday season approaching.
Beware of suspicious calls in which persons pose as banking officials, lawyers, and law enforcement demanding funds with little to no viable background information.
AbbyPD Senior Safety Outreach Program offers a wide range of resources to promote the well-being and security of our cherished senior community.
AbbyPD will host another information session on December 15th, 2023, addressing fraud and scam prevention specifically for seniors.
All sessions are free and will be held at the Clearbrook Library located at 32320 George Ferguson Way from 2-3 PM.
