CALGARY police say their officers were ready and waiting when a grandparent scammer turned up at a senior’s door to collect money from the elderly victim, landing the scammer a criminal charge for fraud.
The scam began when the 81-year-old victim received a call around 9 a.m. on Friday, September 9 from a man claiming to be a lawyer stating the victim’s grandson was in police custody in the United States and that he needed money for bail. The “lawyer” claimed he needed $12,000 to bail the grandson out of jail and told the victim not to say anything to anyone.
The victim withdrew the money and was told another man would be there to pick up the money. Half an hour later, a man appeared at the victim’s door to pick up the money.
A short time later, the victim received another call from a person claiming to be the “lawyer’s” supervisor, saying they would need another $10,000. The victim went to the bank to withdraw more money and at that point was assisted by a bank employee who encouraged him to call his grandson to double check the authenticity of the claim. The grandson confirmed he was fine, and although he was in fact in the U.S., he was not in trouble. The victim then called police.
Officers arrived and knowing the man was coming to collect the second sum of money, decided to wait with the victim at his home. Around 4 p.m., a man came to the door to collect the money and was subsequently arrested by…
