On Monday, April 24, the Nassau County Police Department reported a series of crimes against citizens, all of whom were 65 years of age or older.
The incident was first reported in Farmingdale on Thursday, April 6, when detectives reported that a 69-year-old woman received a call from someone claiming to be an Apple employee.
Scammers convince the victim that her computer and all accounts have been compromised.
The scammer claimed that in order to keep her money safe, she would need to withdraw all the money in her bank account and bring it to Connecticut, where it would be transferred to a cryptocurrency account.
During several trips, the victim transferred more than $500,000.
A week later, a 67-year-old Seaford man was targeted on Facebook by an unknown user who directed the victim to contact a second user about a bogus government program the victim was eligible for.
However, after contacting the second user, the scammer told the victim that he needed to transfer money in order to apply for the scheme.
The victim made multiple transfers totaling thousands of dollars before realizing it was a scam, police said.
A third victim was targeted the day after Friday, April 14, detectives said.
An 84-year-old Bethpage woman has been in contact with a man claiming to be her arrested grandson’s lawyer.
To get him out, the crooks had the woman withdraw $9,800 from her account.
After returning home, the crooks called the woman again and told her to go outside her home, where a man fled in a silver SUV with the victim’s money.
The suspect is described as an Asian male in his 40s, police said.
All three offenses are under investigation and they do not appear to be connected.
The Nassau County Police Department is urging community members to remain vigilant of potential scams and to check on friends and family who may be vulnerable.
Anyone with information about any incidents should contact the Nassau County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-244-TIPS. All calls will remain anonymous.
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