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Valued Contributor
Posts: 744
Registered: ‎05-31-2018

A really sad scamming story told to me today.

For the record as soon as this man starting telling me this, I knew the outcome.

 

His wife received a call a few weeks ago, it was from a "lawyer" in NYC.  Her son had been arrested out of the country and needed money to get back to the US.  The wife did the whole walmart gift card thing, then the request was for more and more and more.  One day the wife said she had no more money and the "lawyer" asked her if she told her husband what was going on with "their son."  She told him no, that he would be angry so the lawyer asked for her husbands phone number.  She gave it to him.  When he got the call, he was on to them.  almost 25 k later he is making arrangements to pay his credit card.

 

By the time the husband got called, the son was back in the country and they were able to confirm the scam.  The poor woman was terrified, the "lawyer" would call with tales of her son being beaten in this prison.  Being starved to death.

 

The tears on this mans eyes and his trembling voice are something I will never forget.  He told me his wife is not doing well and he is afraid the horror of it all is going to kill her.  He is 90. 

 

Please warn your loved ones.

Respected Contributor
Posts: 4,536
Registered: ‎12-13-2010

Re: A really sad scamming story told to me today.

I cannot believe people fall for these scams. Sad indeed.

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,671
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: A really sad scamming story told to me today.

@ellaphant


@ellaphant wrote:

I cannot believe people fall for these scams. Sad indeed.


I got this scam , but he said he was my grandson.  I got it a second time a few months later and again said he was my other grandson.  I didn,t fall for the scams, but I have to say, both times the voices sounded like both my grandsons.  I mean so real.  It wasn,t until I said, give me your number, I will call you back, I need to make a few calls to verify your story.  He hung up.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 8,323
Registered: ‎03-20-2010

Re: A really sad scamming story told to me today.

Other than a person having dementia and diseases like that, I just cannot understand why they do not contact the son or grandchild to verify.  They could just agree to do what was asked then make a few phone calls to family to verify.  It's so heartbreaking to hear these stories.

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 7,645
Registered: ‎03-28-2015

Re: A really sad scamming story told to me today.

The money these scammers make from uneducated people is alarming.....no wonder it is getting worse...

Honored Contributor
Posts: 18,607
Registered: ‎10-25-2010

Re: A really sad scamming story told to me today.

You would think anyone would wonder what a lawyer was going to do with Walmart gift cards.  

 

These types of scams have been around for years, yet people still fall for them.

 

i have mentioned before that our friends son received a call like this from his daughter's  " kidnappers". He is divorced from her mother and the daughter doesn't live with him.

 

His crying teenage daughter was on the phone begging daddy to help her and he fell for it. His present wife stepped in and called his ex-wife and she verified that his daughter was home safe and sound.

 

This man is around 50 and a savvy business man who should have figured this out.  I still can't believe he didn't. He said he was so scared that he wasn't thinking right. He swore it was his daughter on the phone.

 

He always carries cash and flashes it around, so I think someone knew him personally. They also knew a lot about his daughter.

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,889
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: A really sad scamming story told to me today.

This scam has been going on for years. It’s sad that people still fall for it. One quick text might have settled the problem. Usually it’s the elderly who get taken. Their generation was able to trust people more than we can today and scammers take advantage of it. There have always been grifters, liars, and cheats but there seem to be more of them these days.

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Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,453
Registered: ‎02-02-2015

Re: A really sad scamming story told to me today.

Families really do need to have some discussion about these scams to keep their loved ones safe.  

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,457
Registered: ‎03-02-2016

Re: A really sad scamming story told to me today.

I too don't know why people get taken by this scam. It is so easy to check to see how the "kidnapped" relative is doing. Just pick up the phone and check with the person him/herself or call the mom and dad, etc.  These scams have been going on for years and years. It is hard not to know about them. They have been reported about on television, newspapers, at senior centers, all over the place. I just have to smh at times.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 25,929
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: A really sad scamming story told to me today.

 Several years ago we had our camper listed for sale on Craigslist. You would not believe the number of scam calls we got after that. So last year when we wanted to sell a camper we used a burn phone and after the camper was sold we threw it away.