TROY, Mich. – A Western Union worker came to the rescue of a frantic grandmother who was about to send a small fortune to a scam artist.
According to police, an elderly Troy woman was too vulnerable when she got a call from someone saying they were from Montreal Police and had her grandson in jail. They also said that they needed $3,600 for bail money. A young man pretending to be the grandson even got on the phone crying for help.
The grandmother left her home and went to Western Union inside a nearby Kroger, filled out a form and was ready to wire the money. But luckily the clerk knew the form had scam written all over it and refused to make the transfer.
"Why do they do that to us," said Patricia Espizito, who was targeted by a similar scam.
"I caught it before they could get any money," said Espizito.
Espizito was lucky, but think about the dozens of elderly people who weren't so lucky.
The grandmother was able to contact her grandson later on, who traced the call back to Montreal.