One of our residents received a phone call from a person she believed to be her grandson. The scammer/alleged grandson stated that he had been in an accident and a woman had been killed. He further stated that he needed $176,000 to get out of jail. After a lengthy conversation our resident agreed to give the alleged grandson $18,000. Arrangements were made where the resident was to put the money in a paper bag and the scammer would come by and pick up the money. The resident had a caregiver with her but she (resident) had been instructed by the scammer, not to tell anyone what was happening.After the exchange was made, the resident was talking to her daughter and during the conversation she learned that her grandson was never involved in any accident. The resident immediately made a police report. The scammer and an alleged lawyer apparently got greedy and called the victim back stating that the grandson needed more money for the lawyer. The resident and her caregiver made arrangements for the scammers to come back to the resident’s house to get more money.

They then called the Lincoln Police. Before the police could arrive, two female scammers came to the house. The caregiver was able to detain these two scammers. The police arrived shortly thereafter, and they were arrested.

The two female scammers lead the police to the original male scammer. The resident’s daughter advised that these individuals had sent the $18,000 via FedEx to a contact in New Jersey. The Police were able to work with FedEX and recover all the money. According to the resident’s daughter, all three were arrested. According to the resident’s daughter, all three scammers (one male and two females) were apparently of East Indian descent. They all spoke English very clearly.

This case starts out with the usual theme: one of the resident’s grandchildren had been involved in an accident and is either in the hospital or in jail and needs money immediately. The scammers play on fear and there is always an urgency to the request for money.

This case differs in that the scammers actually came to the resident’s house to pick up the money. Usually the payment will be money orders or gift cards and email the numbers on the back of the cards to the scammer.

Ask for identifying information from a “grandchild” in trouble.

Always check caller ID and only answer calls from numbers you recognize. A legitimate caller will leave a message. Remember government agencies are not going to call you. Sign up for nomorobo.com to avoid most automated calls.