KCPD raises money for elderly woman who lost life savings when scammers threatened her
Kansas City police created a GoFundMe account to help replenish the bank account of an elderly woman in Gladstone who lost her life savings to scammers.
Scammers defrauded a 78-year-old woman of at least $75,000, depleting both her and her son’s entire life savings from their joint account, the Kansas City Police Department said in a news release.
Police are now asking for the public’s help in rebuilding the family’s savings. As of Monday evening, the GoFundMe account had raised nearly $1,400 of its $10,000 goal.
On Dec. 2, employees at two Northland Target stores told police that an elderly woman had purchased at least $60,000 worth of prepaid gift cards using cash since Nov. 24.
“When the employee tried to warn her she may be getting scammed, she told the employee she feared for her life,” according to the news release.
Police later shared a photo of the woman in the hopes of finding out who she was.
She was identified within an hour, authorities said. But in that time she had already purchased $2,000 more in credit cards from Best Buy.
Detectives with KCPD’s economic crimes unit met with the woman last week and helped her close out her accounts that had been hacked.
As police were helping her open new bank accounts, the scammer called again. A detective answered the phone and told the caller “that the game was up,” according to the news release.
“There was no doubt in my mind they were going to get every last cent she had if it kept going,” Economic Crimes Sergeant Sebastian Hanriot said in the release.
Hanriot said the scammers had a plethora of information on the woman’s life, including on her son and when her mortgage would be paid off.
The scammer initially contacted the victim and said they were with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The scammer then told her she “was the victim of international criminals,” according to the release.
Police said the woman lied to officials at first about who she was buying the gift cards for.
She later told police the scammers told her she was being followed. The scammers also told her if she called police, something bad would happen to her or her son, officials said.
The scammers, who had accessed her account, “ordered” her each day to withdraw money from her account and use it to buy gift cards, then transfer the gift cards to them.
“No legitimate organization or business will threaten to harm you or family members, nor will they ask for payment in gift cards,” police said in the release. “Advise them to hang up on scam callers and delete scam emails.”
The investigation is being handed to the Gladstone Department of Public Safety, since the victim lives in Gladstone, Kansas City police said.
KCPD encourages the community to check in with and warn any elderly family or friends about similar scams.
