Almost every day, senior citizens are relieved of thousands of euros by trick calls. As reported on several occasions, the criminals pretend to be police officers or desperate family members of the victims on the phone and demand that they transfer money to foreign accounts or hand over cash to a messenger.
“Involved in an accident that caused death”
A 79-year-old from Klagenfurt did not fall for the crooks. “I was at a meeting when my wife called me to come home immediately. An alleged police officer informed her that our son was involved in an accident with one fatality.” The demand: 50,000 euros bail, otherwise the couple’s son would remain in custody.
The call was made from a withheld number. “In the background, a small child kept screaming ‘Grandma, Grandma’. My wife got very nervous thinking it was our grandson. The caller’s voice remained calm. There were clear instructions. My wife said she would call the policeman back, but he didn’t want to, just said; he’ll get back to you.”
I stayed calm and did not transfer the requested 50,000 euros. Always try to remain calm when you receive a call like this.
79-year-old Klagenfurt pensioner
However, the man from Klagenfurt kept a cool head: “I immediately contacted my son, who of course had no accident, everything was fine. Luckily we didn’t fall for the trick and alerted the real police. “
