MADERA COUNTY – Sheriff John Anderson is issuing a fraud alert to senior citizens throughout Madera County about a new tactic cons artists are using in the “Granny Scam.”
Over the weekend an 86-year-old Eastern Madera County woman received a call from a female claiming to be her granddaughter.
The woman sounded distraught and begged the victim for help. The phone call was cut off, and then a second call came in – this time from a man posing as the suspect’s attorney. He told the victim that her supposed relative had crashed into another vehicle and was now in jail, being held in lieu of a $19,000 bond.
Worried, the victim wired the requested funds via Western Union.
It was only after the transaction was complete that the victim discovered the truth.
Sheriff Anderson says, “NEVER wire money to a stranger, no matter how good the story may sound.” He says your best defense with calls like this is to hang up. Then, call your family to find out if your grandchild really is in trouble.
Had a similar scam call last year regarding an injured nephew. How mad will people get? We were lucky, and wary, hung up and called out nephew who of course, was fine. Really awful people out there these days.