Brampton woman, 86, says scammers threatened her after she refused to send them $10K

An 86-year-old Brampton, Ont., woman is warning other seniors to be extra vigilant after scammers tried to swindle her out of $10,000, and resorted to making threatening phone calls when she refused to send them money.

Joan said she got the first call at approximately 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 3, from a man who identified himself as Officer Spring. CBC News has agreed not to use her full name because she's concerned for her safety.

The man told Joan that during a police traffic stop, they found drugs in the trunk of a car in which her grandson was travelling.

"He said, 'We're going to have to take him to the station … [and] you have to post a $10,000 bond,"' she told CBC Toronto.

Police services across the Greater Toronto Area have recently reported an increase in the number of scams in which thieves demand that seniors send thousands of dollars to get their grandchild out of jail. The elaborate hoax involves at least two people on a call, with one posing as a police officer and another as the desperate grandchild.

Joan said the man told her the cash bond was necessary in case her grandson decided to run.

"I said, 'Well do I get the money back?' He said, 'Yes.' He said, `We have to send the blood test away to get results and you'll get the money back in two weeks.'"

Joan said another person — who she thought was her grandson — came on the phone.

"I said, 'What's wrong' [and] he said, 'Please don't hang up, I only get one call. I need $10,000, please don't tell anybody, please don't tell my mom, she'll get mad and she will yell at me, you know what she's like.'"

Joan said the scammers were so persistent that even when she told them she has a disability and can't go out, they offered to come and take her to the bank.

After the scammer hung up, Joan said she decided to call her grandson. She told him what happened and he told her it was a scam.

When the scammer called back, Joan said she told them her grandson was with her and she knew it was a scam. But she said they continued to press her for money — calling her at least four times that day.

"The next day, he calls back, he says, 'Well, did you get the cash?' I said, 'No I didn't, I can't get it, I don't have that money,' and he said, 'You better get the cash.'"

He said the caller became rude and threatening, telling her she was "old and senile."

"Before he hung up, he said, 'I know where you live' … he knew he was not getting any money out of me but he kept hammering," Joan added.

Victims swindled out of more than $50K

On Aug. 11 York Regional Police warned the public of an increase in grandparent scams after they received reports of 13 incidents in one week.

Some victims have been swindled out of more than $50,000 since Aug. 4, the force's financial crimes unit said in a news release. Criminals are targeting elderly and vulnerable people, police added.

On Friday, York Regional Const. Amy Boudreau told CBC Toronto there's been a "dramatic increase" in this particular type of scam since 2019.

"So far we have up to about just under $1,000,000 of lost money from some of the victims that have come forward," she said.

"I don't even think all of the victims have even reported this type of incident, because sometimes people are embarrassed to come forward or they are not sure. They still maybe think they gave it to their grandchild."

Boudreau said the scammers are targeting vulnerable populations, adding that if they can get even just one person fooled, that's a payday for them.

"So, [the victims] could be newcomers to Canada, it could be our senior citizens that maybe aren't as savvy online or about the different types of crimes that are happening through the phone or Internet," she said.

"They're playing different characters, it could be a lawyer, a police officer, an immigration officer, those types of people to create that authority and trying to make the scenario sound real."

Police offered the following tips to avoid being a victim:

• Never offer personal or financial information to the caller.
• Call the grandchild or family member in question at a phone number you recognize as their own.
• Ask the caller personal questions that only your grandchild could answer but an imposter could not.
• Verify the story or information with family first.
• If the callers identify themselves as government officials, press them for details and verify the information.
• Never send money to someone you don't know
• Take some time to ask yourself: 'Could this be a scam?' and 'Does it make sense?'

Meanwhile, Joan has a message for other seniors who get calls for money.

"Please, please, people, if you don't know that person, ask for their badge number and ask for the precinct they're from, please," she said.

"Talk to somebody; do not give anybody any money, no matter what."