© 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
York Regional Police say three people are facing charges after an Ontario senior lost $5,000 in an apparent “grandparent scam.”
Police said on Nov. 24, officers were told that a 73-year-old woman had lost $5,000 after someone pretending to be her grandson had been arrested and said that he needed money for bail.
Someone identified himself to her as a police officer and told her it would cost $9,000 for her grandson to be released from jail, investigators said.
A “grandparent scam” is where scammers contact elderly people posing as a grandchild in distress with a fake story, typically about urgently needing money to get them out of trouble.
Trending Now
Trending Now
Story continues below advertisement
Police allege the suspect then went to the woman’s home and collected $5,000 while two others stayed in a getaway car outside the residence.
After the three had left, police said the woman got another phone call saying she had to pay another $4,000.
Police said investigators found the vehicle and stopped it in Brampton just before the suspects took more cash from the woman.
Officers charged Dikran Artin Khano, 22, and Kasson Roker, 19, both of Laval, Que. They also charged Kaouane Rami, 21, of no fixed address.
Charges include fraud over $5,000, possession of property obtained by crime, extortion, and for Roki and Rami, failure to comply with a court order.
