These stories get into the paper every so often, but they often bear repeating. Scammers will prey on the emotions and bank books of our senior citizens. And we need to keep this in the news cycle to serve as a reminder.
Recently, a relative of mine was nearly conned out of several thousand dollars. It was a twist on the old, “Grandma, I’m in jail and need money” scam. However, in this case, the story was that the “grandson” was driving and “hit a pregnant woman. We’re at the hospital, and the baby’s in trouble, and they say they need money (thousands) within the hour!”
This relative was induced to withdraw the money from her account and go to a different bank to deposit it into another. She was more than halfway lost in the scam before it was identified. If not for the sharp eye and quick thinking of a Mukilteo Bank of America teller and her manager, she would have completed the transaction and lost a small fortune. We are very grateful to these good people who recognized and stopped the scheme before it was too late. But we know that for every scam that is foiled, some will come to fruition.
We believe the scammers must have found the family connection through Facebook. They knew names and Facebook “friends” that were posted on the grandson’s page. Follow those from page to page, and in a short while and you can deduce who is related to who, and what the relationship is.
But forewarned is forearmed. Not everything needs to be on social media. Everyone must be vigilant. And folks, when a call like this comes along, ask for answers to questions that only the other person could know. You may save yourself, or a loved one, a lot of money and heartache.
Michael Neeley
Everett
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