“WYANDOTTE: Seniors get fraud phone calls” |
| WYANDOTTE: Seniors get fraud phone calls Posted: 07 Dec 2010 02:56 PM PST WYANDOTTE — A 74-year-old woman received a telephone message on Nov. 11 from a man telling her that she had won the Reader's Digest America's Favorite Sweepstakes. She received another call from a different man telling her about the "winnings," the second-place prize of $450,000. He said she needed to send $1,260 to a Philadelphia office through Western Union to receive the prize. She said the man said the fee was for the Department of Homeland Security's new "terrorist act" to make sure the money wouldn't go to terrorist organizations. She questioned the man, who gave her a number to call Homeland Security. She called and a man identifying himself as officer said if she had a fax machine, he would send her a document confirming the authenticity of the sweepstakes. She doesn't have a fax machine and gave up. She called Reader's Digest, and a representative told her that this was a fraud. Wyandotte police Detective Lt. Bobie Heck contacted the "Homeland Security officer" with the number given to the woman. The man who answered said he didn't have any knowledge of the calls. When asked, he said he wouldn't give any more information. The woman said she received another phone call after that. The man asked her why she had called police and called her an obscenity. Since she has reported the calls to police, she said she has received a dozen more calls that she thinks are from the fraudulent company. Continued... The calls have come from all over the United States and other countries. The woman said her brother got similar phone calls from the same numbers. The sweepstakes' website says, "Winners receive an official notification letter in the mail from Ronald J. Leslie, Sweepstakes Director. Just provide the requested information, send it back, and your prize will be on its way." The site gives fraud prevention tips. "Most reputable companies notify winners by mail. So if you receive a phone call saying you've won a prize, just ask one simple question: 'Is it free?' If not, hang up. "Be suspicious if people ask you for money to claim a prize." The woman and police said they wanted to make the public aware of this fraud. "I am concerned that there could be other potential victims who fall for this scam," Heck said. WYANDOTTE — A 74-year-old woman received a telephone message on Nov. 11 from a man telling her that she had won the Reader's Digest America's Favorite Sweepstakes. She received another call from a different man telling her about the "winnings," the second-place prize of $450,000. He said she needed to send $1,260 to a Philadelphia office through Western Union to receive the prize. She said the man said the fee was for the Department of Homeland Security's new "terrorist act" to make sure the money wouldn't go to terrorist organizations. She questioned the man, who gave her a number to call Homeland Security. She called and a man identifying himself as officer said if she had a fax machine, he would send her a document confirming the authenticity of the sweepstakes. She doesn't have a fax machine and gave up. She called Reader's Digest, and a representative told her that this was a fraud. Wyandotte police Detective Lt. Bobie Heck contacted the "Homeland Security officer" with the number given to the woman. The man who answered said he didn't have any knowledge of the calls. When asked, he said he wouldn't give any more information. The woman said she received another phone call after that. The man asked her why she had called police and called her an obscenity. Since she has reported the calls to police, she said she has received a dozen more calls that she thinks are from the fraudulent company. The calls have come from all over the United States and other countries. The woman said her brother got similar phone calls from the same numbers. The sweepstakes' website says, "Winners receive an official notification letter in the mail from Ronald J. Leslie, Sweepstakes Director. Just provide the requested information, send it back, and your prize will be on its way." The site gives fraud prevention tips. "Most reputable companies notify winners by mail. So if you receive a phone call saying you've won a prize, just ask one simple question: 'Is it free?' If not, hang up. "Be suspicious if people ask you for money to claim a prize." The woman and police said they wanted to make the public aware of this fraud. "I am concerned that there could be other potential victims who fall for this scam," Heck said. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| You are subscribed to email updates from Content Keyword RSS To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
.gif "OBAT KUAT")
.gif)
No comments:
Post a Comment