Keeping our elders safe is a “peacekeeping” tactic that everyone can embrace. As a community it’s up to each individual to watch out for the safety and well-being of one another. Numerous stories in the media detailing how trusting elderly citizens are falling victim to scams and losing their life savings to the fake promise of love are becoming very prominent. Dr. Phil has featured many of these stories on his show to help raise awareness and equip people with the knowledge of this cruel and heartless scheme.
Sweetheart Scams are known as the act of preying upon a victim for financial gain, while deceitfully promising them love. These cruel acts of intention can be played out online or in person. The perpetrator convinces their victim that they are madly in love and then plays on their emotions to cheat them out of large sums of money. It’s sad to say that many elderly men and women have fallen victim and lost millions of dollars.
The recent story of Georgia Muller caught my attention. Ms. Muller, a great grand-mother who loves to paint and post her pictures on Facebook was targeted by someone online pretending to be the Captain of a ship. The more they communicated with one another the more Ms. Muller developed an emotional bond with the pretend Captain. He would send her poems and love notes and she enjoyed the attention. When the time was right, Ms. Muller was asked to wire several hundred dollars to the Captain. Luckily for Muller her internal instincts alerted her that this was a case of fraud.
My appeal to you today is to become more active in the life of an elderly person. Take a vested interest in your loved ones to ensure that they are not falling victim to the schemes, strategies or plots of the enemy. As the bible says, our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against rulers, authorities and power in the dark places. The enemy attacks us at our weakest moments and wages an all out war on our self-identity and our emotional being.
Send me a comment and let me know how you plan to become more active with the elders in your family and community.
There are several different ways that the elderly are being deceived out of their money. Some of the tactics that are being used are threats and deceit, pressure tactics, jury scams, computer scams, financial planning scams and home renovation scams.
If you suspect that and elderly family member of friend is in trouble there are three things that you can do to help.
- Go to IC3.gov. The FBI runs the site. It lists various scams and even buzzwords to listen for.
- Go to FBI.gov. It also lists scams and how to spot them.
- Report your suspicions to the local authorities.
