(ConservativeJournal.org) – Six people in Florida are facing long prison time for allegedly stealing close to $250,000 from elderly people through “grandparent scams”. The announcement of the arrests was made by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody on Monday, June 24.
The suspects apparently contacted seniors, pretending to be lawyers representing their grandchildren. They made up stories that their grandchildren needed money for bail after being arrested. The victims were then persuaded to send money to the scammers.
The suspects instructed victims to gather the bail money in cash and place it in a box. This box would be picked up by couriers who then delivered the cash to a predetermined location, according to investigators.
In several cases, the suspects repeatedly contacted the same victim to demand more money. One of the elderly victims initially paid $9,000 and was later told they needed to pay an extra $18,000 for more charges that their “grandchild” faced. The suspects also made up different charges for different victims so they could maximize the amount of money.
Another senior was similarly scammed of over $50,000. One victim was forced to pay $8,000 and was contacted the next day for $4,000 more for the grandson’s bail due to, again, fake “extra charges”. The day after that, the scammers requested another $2,000 for alleged medical bills related to the fake story.
The arrested individuals face multiple first-degree felony charges, including fraud, grand theft, and misuse of identification.
The head of Miami police, Stephanie Daniels, said that she was very proud of all the officers and detectives involved in the operation and that they did an excellent job finding the scammers. She stated that such schemes are not tolerated in any sense and that protecting the elderly is always a priority.
The investigation is still ongoing as authorities work to bring justice to those affected by the scams.
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