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NEWARK - An emerging scam
where con artists target grandparents is
being reported across the country and Acting
Attorney General Paula T. Dow and Acting
Consumer Affairs Director Sharon Joyce today
warned residents to be leery of callers
claiming to be their grandchild and in need
of money.
“These con artists
are exploiting the grandparent-grandchild
relationship for their own personal gain,”
Acting Attorney General Dow said. “Grandparents
are being defrauded out of hundreds, even
thousands, of dollars.”
In this scam, the con artist
calls the grandparent and claims he/she
is the grandchild and either is stranded
or under arrest and in need of cash immediately.
In most reported cases, the caller claims
to be in Canada on a visit and that the
money must be wired. The wired funds end
up in an account controlled by the con artist.
The con artist usually has
the name of the grandchild, which was obtained
from online blogs, networking web sites
or genealogy web sites.
Joyce said anyone who receives
such a telephone call should report it to
their local consumer affairs office or the
state Division of Consumer Affairs. No complaints
have been filed with the Division to date.
Consumers
can file complaints with the Division online
at www.nj.gov/oag/ca/ocp/ocpform.htm
or by calling 1-800-242-5846
(toll-free within N.J.) or 973-504-6200.
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