‘Hang up. Call your grandchildren’: Alberta grandparents warn of financial scam

An elderly couple in southern Alberta were nearly duped out of more than $8,000 when they were told their grandson needed bail money.

It all started with a simple phone call to Melvin and Linda Barnes. The caller told them it was urgent and he even sounded familiar.

“The guy that I was talking to sounded just like my grandson, so I presumed it was my grandson I was talking to,” said Linda.

Another person posing as a lawyer told the couple to meet them in Lethbridge to exchange nearly $10,000.

“He says, ‘You can’t tell anybody about this, please don’t tell anybody about this.’

“I thought, ‘What’s the big secret?’”

However, it was all a sham.

“They just want to take the grandparents for a ride. I think it’s sad because they’re taking your life savings and grandparents will do anything for their grandchildren.”

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In recent months, Lethbridge police have warned artificial intelligence is being used by scammers to mimic voices of loved ones.

“Anything can happen today; technology is not that great.”

Thankfully, several red flags were raised and the couple went to speak with the police before handing over any cash.

“(We) talked to the officer there, and he said, oh you’re a grandparent scam, eh?” Melvin said they took their cash and went home.

Earlier this week, police warned these scams were increasing in frequency.

Stephanie Law is a constable in the economic crimes’ unit of the Lethbridge Police Service. She says scammers thrive on panic.

“Ask questions, slow down. These scammers work on being quick and pressure and all that kind of stuff. So, if you get a phone call, hang up, call your grandchild, call their parents, whatever you need to do to verify this is actually happening,” said Law.

As for Linda, she wonders why people resort to scamming seniors.

“There’s so many scammers out there. Why don’t they get a job and leave the honest person alone?”

The Barnes’ believe the police message is important, as confirmation should come before action.

“Hang up. Call your grandchildren.”

Lethbridge police are also warning residents to be wary of involuntarily entering into these scams.

“For people looking for jobs, these quick cash-at-the-end-of-the-day-type courier jobs are probably not the best way to go,” said Law.

“So, you’d want to do some double-checking with the employer and just see what exactly it is for. Because typically, going to people’s homes to get money and then depositing that is not normally a course for business for really anybody.”

Police also say no official government organization, be it the police or court officials, will ever ask to meet anywhere other than a police station or courthouse when requiring any form of payment.

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