The telephone rings. On the other end of the line, a voice identifies itself as being responsible for one of the National Police stations in Murcia – El Carmen or San Andrés. He does not skimp on details. The supposed commissioner takes possession of a last name capable of convincing and quickly alerts us that they have our son in police stations. The night has gone wrong and the kid’s life has been complicated by a spectacular accident or a hit-and-run. With good words and a lot of smooth talk, the supposed commissioner convinces us that he wants to give us a hand because he knows that our son is not to blame but, of course, he also needs us to do our part. The urgent payment of a deposit, he explains, will allow us to get out of the quagmire. The net is already cast.
This scam seems like something out of a movie, but in recent months, according to sub-inspector Diego Seral, spokesman for the National Corps, eight similar cases have already been registered in the city of Murcia. His victims came to deliver between 3,000 and 5,000 euros, either in a meeting with an alleged police officer, or through ‘bizums’ or bank transfer – to accounts opened with false documentation and, therefore, very difficult to trace.
SOME ADVICES
-
At the bank: Try to be accompanied by someone you trust:
Ask the employees and don’t accept help from strangers. -
Use indoor ATMs:
Hide your secret key. -
Domicile your payments:
Avoid withdrawing large amounts of money. -
If your cards are stolen:
Cancel them and report the facts. -
At your home: If you lose the keys to your home:
Change the lock. -
Find out about technical reviews in your home
to prevent the entry of a false technician. -
Do not provide personal data,
nor banking to strangers. -
Do not talk to strangers about your travel plans,
Don’t post it on social media. -
On the street: When you are walking,
try to do it on the inside of the sidewalk. -
Carry the bag as a shoulder bag
and do not store your objects in the back pockets. -
Do not accept proposals that are made to you on the street,
it may be a scam.
They are just one example of the many and varied scams that plague the elderly and that have led this body to launch an awareness campaign. “We are perceiving a significant increase in complaints from older people,” emphasizes Seral. “We want to convey to the elderly or to those who are in charge of the elderly the importance of explaining to them that we are living in a different era.”
Some of the crimes that have the oldest as their main objective are already old acquaintances, although there are still many who fall and the complaints continue to crowd. This is the case of thefts through a fake gas inspector, a specialty that has a special incidence in the districts of Murcia and in rural areas, for example, Yecla. The thieves usually choose older people or married couples who live alone and arrive dressed in a uniform or vest from the supposed company providing the service or showing false identification. In some cases, they simulate a search and charge for it, and in others, they take advantage of the carelessness to ransack the home. Sub-inspector Seral emphasizes that service companies always notify their revisions by telephone and, more and more frequently, charge for the work through the invoice to avoid this type of case.
The agents detect that some ‘love thefts’ become more violent with the intervention of a second assailant
The ‘love theft’ are another type of attack on the elderly that has been taking place for years but, alert the Police, in some cases they are becoming more violent. The mode of operation is repeated: a middle-aged woman who approaches an elderly person and strikes up a conversation with her for whatever reason. At a certain moment, she hugs her and takes advantage of the situation to, with great skill, take her wallet, her watch or her chain. Lately, the Police have detected the presence of a second assailant, usually a man, who waits nearby and intervenes violently if the older person resists. “These are traveling organizations, which makes work very difficult,” explains the spokesman for the body. “When they are arrested, it is found that they have a very extensive criminal record.”
From the 25th to the 30th of each month
Friends of foreigners do not miss a detail and they also know how to plan their blows based on the calendar. The National Police points out that from the 25th to the 30th of each month, robberies of the elderly are frequent when leaving the bank. Many older people still have the habit of going to their offices on those dates – when they collect their pension – to withdraw an amount of cash that allows them to cover expenses. A circumstance that some groups that “wait” at the doors of the branches take advantage of. “The best thing is that, if we have to withdraw a significant amount of money -remarks sub-inspector Seral- we go to the bank accompanied by a family member”.
And not only in the street does risk lurk. The fence that criminals tend to the older ones also takes advantage of new technologies. The elderly are more likely to fall for one of the massive scam attempts that come through mobile phones. One of them consists, for example, of a message in which an alleged courier company or Post Office warns that the recipient has to pick up a package or a certified letter. To do so, you have to pay a small fee in advance. When he arrives at the office, the victim realizes that he has been the target of a scam. “These are very small amounts that people are willing to pay,” says the body’s spokesman. “There are groups that in one day have made 30,000 euros without doing anything at all.”
One of the latest attacks by scammers arrives on Whatsapp through a simple but effective message: “Mom, I have lost my mobile”. They pretend to be their children, assuring that their mobile has been blocked and they have another number to later request urgent money to solve a problem.
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