01/23/2024
https://www.fcc.gov/grandparent-scams-get-more-sophisticated
PSA to EVERYONE who loves a Senior Citizen or who is one already.
Evil people know how much we love our Grands. They know that the mention of one of their names fills us with pride and thankfulness. We actually swell up and some of us (get a tear reaction we really can't help. Well imagine getting a distress call from one of them. Please read and heed the info I am about to give you.
Last Friday I received a collect call from the Police Department in in my Grands Town in another state. A bereft and totally upset young man (I will NEVER mention a name again). Between sobs I gathered that he had been involved in a car accident a couple of hours earlier and the 6.5 month pregnant woman he hit
was taken to ICU and he had stitches in his lip and he jaw was likely broken (explaining the sobs and hard to understand young man) He begged me not to call his parents and to please call his public defender because he had been arrested. As a routine thing they had him blow and he blew a high levels of drugs and alcohol. He was in jail charged with a DUI. He is very young and had just been pulled up to play varsity ball. I I did all I could do to calm him down and trust that I would do what ever I could and called the attorney. He confirmed what my Grand had told me. I asked the Atty if he demanded a blood draw and he did. It came back clean but because the victim was in such bad shape the DAs office was considering vehicular manslaughter. If he did not make bail by 5:00 he would have to be there until his court date in 1 week. The atty wanted me to wait for a call from the Clerk of the Court with instructions as to where to send bail to get my poor Grand out of jail. I told the atty that my Grand was to be released only to his Mom and Dad. They were to be my next call.
I was all in and grabbing my keys when I got the call about where to go to send the CASH I got out of my account. for BAIL..$15,000.00. The instructions were so bizarre I finally snapped that this was a horrible scam and worse than that mt GRAND must have been involved. After all I had spoken directly to him. Christopher Stone was smart enough to call my GRAND. He picked up the phone right away reporting that he was gamming at a friends house. I then called my Daughter to let her know what had just happened. The FBI was my next call.
Friends AI is with us and is not being used for GOOD. Like many young people, my Grands are gamers. Fortnight is his game of choice. He plays with friends and others all over the world. He also dabbles on Tic Tock. I did not know this but the Gamers talk to each other. (So much for learning anything about Gaming at Gen Con). I digress. My grands actual voice was used. He only referred to me a Meema and Gma and I would swear to this day it was
him, my much loved and adored Grand Son. If the FBI had not told me about AI and the nightmares they are experiencing over it's potential misuse. They got a recording of him off the net playing Fort Night... I mentioned him in a post several months ago. I am so open on FB that it never occurred to me that this wonderful place is now a very dangerous one. Please give the referenced article a read and protect yourselves and those you love.
Cute puppy pic to draw attention. Doing this to Grand Parents is like kicking this little one.
Martha Mast
