CLARKSBURG, W.Va (WDTV) – State officials are looking to help elderly people who fall victim to scams.
They’re proposing a bill that would help put money back in their pockets.
“Scam artists are basically parasites.”
Some people say it’s gotten so out of hand they seem to be the only kind of calls they get.
“I say ‘I don’t know these people,’ so I don’t even bother answering.”
While it’s near impossible to stop the calls from coming, West Virginia State Auditor J.B. McCuskey is hoping to help scam victims, particularly the elderly.
He said his office is working with AARP to introduce a bill that will set up a fund to compensate victims of these scams.
“The worst is when we end up finding these people, the money’s already gone, and so what you have is an unsuspecting person who now is out half or all of their retirement account and a person who can be and are put in jail quite frequently doesn’t have any way to pay them back,” said McCuskey.
McCuskey said the money would come from fees already paid to the state.
The new Victims’ Compensation Fund would be awarded through a judge and Auditor’s Office on a case-by-case basis.
At the Harrison County Senior Center, they give lessons about how to spot a scammer, but the board’s president said it’s not always enough, and a compensation fund would be a step in the right direction.
“I think it’s a wonderful idea for our seniors. Some of them, the money they’ve been scammed out of, that’s all they…
