Midwesterners Fight Back

As the guardian of a fraud victim, I have grown accustomed - perhaps too accustomed - to being told there is nothing law enforcement officials can do to stop Carribean scammers, because they are operating outside of the U.S.

One state is no longer satisfied with this answer: Minnesota. To see what they are doing and learn more about Jamaican Advance Fee fraud, click here and here.

Evidently, the long arm of the law can stretch, if folks are willing to extend themselves.

Seniors In Their Sights

Although people of all ages are solicited by scammers, perpetrators of Advance Fee fraud are particularly keen on fleecing the elderly.

Though obvious now, I first found this notion ridiculous because, having seen "everything under the sun," senior citizens tend to be wiser than the rest of us.

Upon further reflection, however, targeting elders makes sense because, as a group, they possess more potential vulnerabilities than other demographics. Specifically:

• Declining mental capacity - they sometimes do not reason as well, or think as critically as they used to.
• Respect for authority - unlike Baby Boomers and their successors, older victims are less likely to question authority figures, particularly if they claim to represent government agencies such as the FBI, IRS, or Department of Homeland Security.
• Innocence - having come up in a less cynical age, the elderly are inclined to be more trusting of others than the rest of us.
• Ignorance - lack of awareness, both of the vast array of fraudulent schemes, and the technologies (such as as Caller ID spoofing) criminals use to execute them.
• Loneliness and Depression - isolation can make elders susceptible to scheming flatterers who call them regularly, treat them with respect, and otherwise kill them with kindness.
  
• Financial insecurity - many senior citizens live on a fixed income and have few funds to spare. Afraid of outliving their money, some are tempted seek a big payoff to secure their financial future. 
• Benevolence - elders of modest means may also wish they had more money to help family members or organizations and causes close to their heart. Wanting to do good for others, these older adults are ripe for crooks bent on exploiting their generosity.
  
• Boredom - whether they live in an empty nest or a care facility, many seniors lack stimulation and will take excitement wherever they can find it, particularly if there is an element of chance involved. If you don't believe me, go to the nearest grocery or convenience store and watch them gobble up lottery tickets.

While there is no way of knowing for sure, I suspect that some or all of these weaknesses were exploited by the bastards that brainwashed my Dad, who, as a former salesman, used to be nobody's fool.

Now You See It, Now You Don't

To keep victims paying, Advance Fee fraudsters can get pretty creative.

Knowing that my father had borrowed heavily against his credit card to pay their phony fees, the crooks offered to pay off his balance (over $15,000) in exchange for $500 in cash, a proposition so absurd that even my impaired dad questioned it.

Anticipating pop's skepticism, the scammers cooked up the following charade, to make it look like they were making good on their ridiculous promise:

First, they obtained my dad's credit card number. Surprisingly (or perhaps unsurprisingly, because my father was way over his limit), they did not make unauthorized charges on his account.

Second, they 'paid' my dad's bill by phone using the issuing bank's automated system, which asks for an account number, a routing number, and sometimes a check number. According to law enforcement officials, the withdrawal was made either on a bogus account, or without authorization from a legitimate account, such as the checking account of another scam victim.

Here's where it gets interesting: Transactions are posted to the credit card company's computer almost immediately, sometimes two, or even three days before the check is processed by the bank. This creates the illusion of payment when no money has, in fact, changed hands.

Not that most victims would know it. If the cardholder contacts the provider the day after the scammer 'pays their bill,' they will be told their balance is zero. The con men know the payment is a mirage, and pressure victims to send cash before it evaporates. In short: They use the float - the time it takes the check to bounce - to pick their pocket again.

Such are the lengths these Carribean dirtbags will go, to lend credibility to a scheme that any kid who's been offered a shiny new penny in exchange for a dirty old quarter, can see through.