Bladen County Sheriff’s Office warns of scam targeting grandparents

BLADEN COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — The Bladen County Sheriff’s Office wants you to be aware of a “grandparent scam” that is making the rounds.

The scam involves a grandparent receiving a phone call saying that their grandchild has been involved in some type of incident out of state, possibly a car accident where they were at fault. The caller claims to be the attorney of the grandchild needing several thousand dollars to post a bond to get the grandchild out of jail.

The sheriff’s office says if the grandparent hangs up they will sometimes receive another call from someone claiming to be from the jail housing the grandchild and pleading to send the money.

“Often there is an urgency to the request and no time to try and corroborate the story with the parents or others,” the sheriff’s office wrote in a release. “Scammers will often say they are calling the grandparent because the grandchild does not want the parents to know. Scammers play on your emotions to do the right thing and help the grandchild out as soon as possible.”

Authorities say scammers often ask the victim to go to a store and purchase gift cards in the amount of money requested. The scammers then ask the victim to provide to them the PIN number or serial number off the back of the gift card. Scammers then use this number to receive the cash off the gift card in other parts of the United States or around the world.

“We try our best to educate the public on scams like this and what to look out for,” Sheriff Jim McVicker said. “The scammers are very good at convincing people the scam is real. They often have accurate information about your grandchild and use emotion and urgency to attempt to obtain the money.”

If you receive this type of call, contact the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office who can assist you in determining if the call is real or not.