By Gwen Davis
SPECIAL TO THE HIGHLINE TIMES

It happens frequently: A scammer calls a senior, posing as the senior’s grandson and says, “This is Johnny and I’m in Vancouver and I just got arrested for drunk driving and I need $5,000 dollars wired to me to get me out of jail. And don’t tell mom or dad because I’m really embarrassed.”

The senior’s emotions are tapped and he or she will do anything for Johnny – including hastily wiring the money to “Johnny” even though no such person exists.

The common “Grandparent” scam dupes numerous seniors each year – just one of many other scams and frauds.

Which is why the AARP Washington (Association of American Retired Persons) hosted the event “Scam Jam—Fight Back!” on Sept. 17, collaborating with nearly two-dozen leading agencies and advocates in Washington state to educate seniors about scams and related protection.

Nearly 400 local seniors signed up. The event was held at the Criminal Justice Training Center in Burien.

“We are covering everything from Medicare fraud to investment scams to cyber crime,” said Doug Shadel, state director of AARP Washington. “A highlight was having U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan here, giving people the inside scoop about computer crimes.”

“Our members have particular anxiety about computers because it’s technology and so forth,” he said.

“She gave them tools and said, ‘you can stay safe on the computer, but it’s important to know what’s out there.’ I thought it was excellent.”

The audience was engaged during the daylong event, which began at 9 a.m. and went until 2:45 p.m. The presentations were entertaining as well as informative.

This was the first event of its kind in Washington state, but the organization has put on similar events. “Scam Jam” events are held nation-wide.

One of the easiest scams done on the elderly is selling overpriced gold coins, Shadel said.

“The genius is people will call you up and you’ll hear an advertisement saying, ‘The stock market is really up and down but you can always count on gold.’ And then you buy gold and it’s grossly overpriced. I interviewed four guys [involved in the and said they sold coins from 500 to 1,000 percent markup.”

“You tell them to put it in their safety deposit box for five years and you don’t discover this for a long time,” he said.

There are other scams that particularly effect 50 to 64-year-olds.

“Many of whom are unemployed still and they’ll see these things, ‘send $5,000 and I’ll guarantee you a job.’ If you haven’t had a job for a year or two… that’s something out there,” Shadel said.

“Whenever there’s a bad economy, there are always things around foreclosure, people losing their homes or trying to find a job,” he said. “I think anyone can be taken, but there are people who are more susceptible than others.”

A study done in 2011 showed the average scam victim was 69 years old.

“There are points in everyone’s life when they’re vulnerable. In some ways it makes you more vulnerable if you have some kind of emotional need that scammers are meeting – then you make an irrational decision.”

U.S. Attorney Durkan presented a section on “Skimming and Internet Fraud” – where scammers steal bank card and PIN numbers often from installing scanners and small cameras on ATM machines.

Mark Couey from the special investigations unit at the Office of the Insurance Commissioner talked about insurance scams where fake insurance companies scam consumers by collecting premiums for bogus policies with no intention of paying the claim. Insurance scams cost residents in Washington State nearly $1.67 billion per year, according to Couey.

Attendees learned how to stop Medicare fraud during a presentation by Roya Rezai, branch chief for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services. If a person is contacted from someone claiming to be from Medicare or Social Security and asks for the person’s Medicare number, it’s a scam. Medicare already has recipients’ numbers, she said.