Hello, I am Lt. Paul Covino of the Medford Police Detective Division.
Recently, we have seen an increase in telephone scams that prey on senior citizens. A caller will call a senior and say that they are calling on behalf of their grandchild. The caller will identify themselves as a police officer of an attorney. They will tell the senior that their grandchild was involved in a serious accident which caused serious injury to other people and they have been arrested. They tell the senior that money is needed to get the grandchild bailed out or pay serious fines, so they don’t have to spend the next three months in jail. They usually ask for an amount upwards to ten or fifteen thousand dollars. The caller tells the senior not to discuss this with anyone because the judge has issued a gag order on this case, and he will revoke the bail proceedings if the senior tells anyone about this. After the senior confirms with the person that they have been speaking with on the phone that they have the money, they send a courier to pick up the money.
If you receive any calls like this, please hang up and call the police to report this. Or, call a friend or family member. DO NOT GIVE MONEY TO ANYONE!
If this were a real situation, the police and courts would never send a courier to pick up money. You would have to bring it to the court or the police station depending on the situation. Even if the court was from out of state, a courier would not be sent to pick up money.
Remember! Do not give money to anyone.!