An 82-year-old woman from Florida lost over $700,000 to scammers who convinced her that her granddaughter was in legal trouble and needed financial help. Over the summer, the woman, who was not identified, received a phone call from a woman claiming to be her granddaughter.
She said that she was involved in a car accident and needed money to get out of jail. A man who identified himself as her lawyer got on the phone and convinced the 82-year-old to withdraw $100,000 from her bank account at multiple branches and hand the money off to a courier.
The scammers continued to demand more money and even told the woman what to say when bank tellers questioned her about the large cash withdrawals. When questioned, she claimed the money was being used for home improvements and that her contractor preferred to be paid in cash. She was instructed to put the money in padded envelopes and give it to a courier who arrived via Uber.
The woman has since filed a lawsuit against her bank, claiming the tellers should have noticed the red flags and refused to let the woman take the money out of her account. Authorities are also working with Uber to identify the people who acted as couriers and showed up at her home.