Police in Hamilton, Ontario have arrested two men from Laval who face charges of conducting a “grandparent scam” after they allegedly exploited a senior citizen in his 90s.
On Tuesday, November 1, according to the force, the victim, from Hamilton, began receiving phone calls from a male impersonating an RCMP police officer.
He was told that his grandson was arrested for having a large quantity of drugs in his vehicle and was in police custody.
The scammer then demanded the victim pay a $120,000 bond to release his grandson.
Another male, posing as the victim’s grandson, came on the phone franticly pleading with the victim to pay the bond, so that he could be released from police custody.
Worried about his grandson, the victim agreed to pay a portion of the demanded bond money, as it was all he had at the time.
According to the Hamilton Police Service, the monetary losses sustained by the victim were minimized by the financial institution, which stepped in when he attempted to obtain money from his account.
Later on the same day, a female playing the role of a court courier, went to the victim’s residence and collected the money.
The victim was advised there was a court imposed ‘gag order’, and he was not permitted to notify anyone of what happened, or his grandson would remain in prison.
On November 2, the victim received more phone calls from the suspects demanding the remainder of the bond money.
The suspects directed the victim to place the money in an envelope at an undisclosed location. At this point, the victim became suspicious and notified the Hamilton Police Service.
Hamilton Police released the names of the following individuals along with the charges:
| Emmanuel Dimotakis, a 19-year-old male from Laval, Quebec. | Fraud over $5000 and impersonating a peace officer |
| Daniel Gallucci, a 21-year-old male from Laval, Quebec. | Fraud over $5000 |
