Beaver borough issued the following announcement on Feb. 25.
The Beaver Police Department wants residents to be aware of a popular scam that has made its way back into the local spotlight. The “Grand Parent” scam targets elderly residents and uses the threat of a grandchild arrest as a way to separate you from your money. The scam typically starts with a phone call from a person pretending to be an attorney, judge, or bail bondsman. They make claims that the grandson or granddaughter was arrested and will often link the arrest to recent accident. The caller will ask for money to be used for bail and court cost. The callers will be very persuasive. The caller will stay in communication with the “grandparent” while they retrieve cash from the bank. While the “grandparents” are on the phone with the caller another person associated with the scam typically shows up at the house to collect. The persuasion can be threatening that “grandparent” that the grand child will go to jail. The Beaver Police Department has fielded calls for this scam in recent days and wants residents to be aware of the scam so they do not fall for it. Please contact Beaver Police if you happen to receive a call like this. This scam has been successful all throughout Western Pennsylvania with the last several weeks including our community.
To learn more about the scam, please visit the links below:
Fraudsters Scam Grandparents by Posing as Grandchildren (aarp.org)
Watch Out for ‘Grandparent’ Scams | Federal Communications Commission (fcc.gov)
Grandparent-Scam-Tips.pdf (consumerfed.org)
Original source can be found here.
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