WILTON — Police are warning residents about fraudulent telephone calls from Canada in which the caller pretends to be a grandchild of local residents, and asks them to send money.
Chief Dennis Brown said his department had gotten six complaints of such calls in recent weeks, and some residents have fallen for the scam. The caller often knows the name of the person on the other end of the line, Brown said.
“We want to be proactive,” he said. “People in Wilton are
trusting and giving. During hard times, neighbors come out and help
each other. Predators prey on that.”
The caller says he or she has been in a car accident or has been arrested and needs money to make bail. The caller then asks the person to wire money and not to tell other family members because they don’t want to get into trouble, Brown said.
The department advises those who receive suspicious phone calls asking for money to end the call as soon as possible and to not provide relatives’ names. Police also warn residents to not give out bank account numbers, Social Security numbers or any other personal information to anybody over the phone.
Those who receive calls of this type are encouraged to contact their local police department, Brown said.
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