Houlton grandma scammed by caller

    Editor’s note: The grandmother’s name is being left out to protect her privacy in this matter. She only wants other grandparents to be on guard and not fall prey to similar crimes.

A Houlton grandmother was duped by a scam that has been going on and is growing. Now, she wants the word out that she was fooled and so it doesn’t happen to someone else.
With all of the media attention on the “grandparents scam,” most people think they won’t be a victim. Don’t judge so quickly.
Even though this person swindled by a caller asking for help will not be the last, it shows why the pervasive “grandparent scam” is more dangerous than ever, reported the “AARP Bulletin Today.”
David Vladeck, director of consumer protection at the Federal Trade Commission, estimated 10,000 victims a year have lost more than $100 million when he appeared recently on NBC’s Today.
“They are preying on the most vulnerable and most generous among us,” he said.
Vladeck said this scam is “enormous.”
The first round of the scam, according to “AARP Bulletin Today” can go this way: “Hi, Grandma, it’s me, your favorite grandson, and I’m in trouble.” The worried grandparent, who may be hard of hearing, would often respond by saying, ‘Bobby, is that you?’— providing the scammer with a name to help him in the ruse.”
But in this local case, the imposter first identified himself by saying ‘this is your grandson’ — using the grandson’s real name — helping to convince the Houlton widow she was speaking with her grandson, and to wire $3,000, which she did.
It was a typical day that shattered the innocence and unconditional love of a grandmother.
The phone rang. She answered it.
“Hi gram,” said the voice.
“I thought it was my grandson,” she said. “I said, ‘How are you today? Are you working?’”
“I’m supposed to, but I am in a little trouble,” he said.
“Do you need some help?,” she asked. “What can I do?”
“Wait a minute,” he said.
On pops a woman, who is supposedly the young man’s attorney. The woman “attorney” explained that her “grandson” had been to Niagara Falls with some friends and as they were coming through the border, the car was searched and the officials discovered drugs. He needed bail money.
“I asked her if she could check with my bank to guarantee the money,” said the grandmother. “The woman said, ‘no we need cash.’”
The woman “attorney” instructed the grandmother on how to send a cash payment through Western Union.
“I said, I don’t even know if Houlton has a Western Union?,” said the grandmother. “She looked it up for me and told me where to go. She then told me what to say and what not to say to Western Union officials. ”
“All these scam artists need is a photo ID, so that can be a completely fake ID. They pick up the money and then they are gone. It is practically impossible to track them down,” said Alison Southwick of the Better Business Bureau when interviewed on NBC Today.
Western Union did call the grandmother to confirm her payment.
“They asked me all kinds of questions,” she said. “But, the woman had told me what to tell them, which wasn’t all true.”
The woman “attorney” had told the grandmother that if Western Union officials think her grandson is in trouble, they would call the border and the grandson would have a harder time getting home.
“She had me just floored,” said the grandmother.
The sting continued. The woman “attorney” informed the grandmother that the judge had dropped the charges, and they were returning her money via a certified check since they didn’t need it. But, it was too late to get the grandson on a plane home and he would have to wait until the next day.
Thinking things were fine, the grandmother was relieved. But, the ordeal wouldn’t be over.
Later that same day, the woman “attorney” called. It was bad news. The judge had fined the grandson.
“Why?,” asked the grandmother. “He dropped the charges.”
Without missing a beat, the woman explained that her grandson had been an accessory to the crime. But no worries, the grandson would try to raise the money for the fine himself.
The so-called “attorney” said she would call the grandmother in the morning and let her know how he made out.
The woman “attorney” on schedule, called back. The grandson wasn’t able to raise the money, could the grandmother help. She agreed, but becoming suspicious, the grandmother asked to speak again to her grandson again before sending more money.
“Well, when I talked to him, it wasn’t him,” the grandmother said.  Listening carefully, she couldn’t pick up her grandson’s Southern drawl.
“I kept him talking to be sure,” she said.
After talking to him, the woman “attorney” came back on the line asking if the grandmother could send the money. She agreed. Then the woman asked how long it would take? The grandmother responded “an hour.”
Hanging up, the grandmother called her daughter and explained the elaborate scheme and said, “I think I am being scammed, but I don’t know what to do?”
At the very beginning, the woman “attorney” and grandson had sworn the grandmother to secrecy.
“They didn’t want any of the family to know because he was ashamed and he wanted to tell them himself when he got home,” said the grandmother.
So, the daughter called her nephew’s cell phone. Sure enough, he was home and in no trouble.
The grandmother went to the police station and reported the scam, but they couldn’t help her at this point.
Everyone the grandmother had told the story to went online to scope out the culprit. They found the money was going to England and the number the grandmother had was a cell phone with a landline for a woman in Quebec.
“Well, if I thought about it then, I would have realized my grandson doesn’t work days, he works nights,” said the grandmother. “At the very beginning, I could have picked it up, but I didn’t. They are awfully smart. I wish I was half as smart. I just wanted to help him.”
With the family feeling awful, and the grandmother rooked, she just wants others to be aware.
“I don’t want it to happen to anyone else,” she said. “We’ve talked it up, especially among seniors, and my daughter typed up notices and posted it.”
But, how did the crooks connect the two?
“That bothers me,” said the grandmother. “We both have different last names.”
“Officials say scammers have teams of accomplices searching for victims on Facebook, combing through newspaper obituaries and anniversary announcements that publish grandparents and grandchildren’s names — all the ammunition the crooks need to make a convincing call,” said the NBC correspondant.
The grandparent scam on Facebook works like this: people are scouring Facebook to find people who appear to be a grandparent or who is actually talking about their grand kids. Then, the scammers will actually contact these “grandparents.”
“We both are on Facebook,” said the grandmother.
To protect yourself, according to “AARP Bulletin Today” follow these simple rules:
• If the caller says, “It’s your granddaughter or grandson,” ask, “Which one?” Most perpetrators will then hang up.
• Confirm your grandchild’s identity by saying you will return the call at his or her home or on his cell phone (but don’t ask the caller for it). If you don’t have the phone numbers, contact a trusted family member for them.
• Never provide your bank or credit card account numbers to any caller.
• Be wary of requests for money wires.