 |
|
|
|
|
Residents at Wesley Manor learn about elder fraud
DA and CPD team up to fight crime, scams
By Moryt Milo
Crime against seniors in Silicon Valley is on the rise, with Campbell's elderly population being among those victimized with scams and fraud, officials with the Santa Clara District Attorney's Office said last week at the Wesley Manor senior apartment complex.
The Feb. 6 presentation was part of an ongoing series of community service activities provided by the DA's office through its Community Prosecutions Unit, which places prosecutors in the community to work with citizens, businesses and government agencies to solve elder abuse.
Campbell resident Kathryn Forte, 84, is one of those local seniors who has been victimized. She experienced unauthorized charges on her credit card and said it took three months to have them removed.
"I kept at it and even wrote the company a nasty letter, saying, 'You must have a crook in your department,"' she said.
Forte came to the presentation because she wanted more information on how to protect herself against financial fraud.
Others, like apartment complex association President Marilyn Kurtz, 69, said, "This is the most people I have ever seen at one of these information events. I think it's because people have been hit by so many of these scams or know someone who was affected."
The event was initiated by Wesley Manor Executive Officer Alice Sutton, who wanted to raise the awareness level among her staff members and residents living in the facility.
"We wanted to let the staff and residents know they had a sounding board for their concerns on elder abuse," Sutton said.
The presentation was also an opportunity for the entire complex to meet and learn about the dangers seniors face in the community and how to avoid being a target.
"For the past several years business has been booming in Silicon Valley," Deputy District Attorney Tiyen Lin said. "Unfortunately the business I am talking about is the business of elder financial abuse."
Lin gave residents examples of scams and tips on how to avoid being a victim and where to go for help and information.
The residents received a handout that outlined the most common tricks to trap seniors. Topping the list was mail and identity theft, alleged sweepstakes, home repair scams and charity swindles.
Seniors were advised to take their mail to the U.S. Postal Office and not leave it outside their homes, where criminals can easily steal it and obtain information about victims, Lin said.
"A criminal can obtain your credit card and ATM numbers by going through your bills or rummaging through your garbage," he said. "They take your credit card applications, change information and make unauthorized purchases."
Lin also talked about the various ways criminals use home-repair scams, and showed a videotape of a recently prosecuted case in Santa Clara County. The suspects were a group dubbed "nomadic travelers" because they pulled the same scam in Florida, Arizona, New Mexico and Southern and Northern California.
"The reason they chose these places was because of the large elderly population," Lin said. "Their trick was to see a senior working outside his or her home and say, 'I noticed your roof looks a little old, maybe there is a problem.' They would go inside the house and press their hand up against the ceiling and it would be wet. But it was wet because the suspect actually had a sponge in his hand and would squeeze it as he pressed against the ceiling."
The scam was so successful it netted $60,000 from 12 Santa Clara County seniors before the group was caught last year.
Lin also warned against entering a sweepstakes contest.
"The quickest way to get a call from a criminal is to fill out a sweepstakes form," he said.
Seniors were also warned against door-to-door solicitors who offer a special repair price because they are only in the area for the day, or the contractor who said, "I was in the neighborhood and have some leftover sealant, Let me see if anything is leaking."
Lin told the seniors to ask themselves, "If this contractor is really good why does he have leftover stuff and how does he know it's the right amount for your house?'"
Throughout the presentation, seniors were told that if something doesn't seem right to pay attention to what they see or feel and recognize it as the first sign of danger. Once a trap is set, the results can lead to physical, psychological or financial abuse.
Some of the signs can be missing financial or credit card statements or friends and family who are no longer visiting or calling, Lin said.
He cautioned seniors about becoming isolated from friends and family and said it is a common way for criminals to prey on the elderly.
But after all the warnings, the group was given a list of ways to protect themselves. Some of the advice was to use direct deposit for checks; pay for goods with credit cards or checks; keep receipts and proof of purchase; ask for references when having a contractor make repairs; not give out a Social Security number if not for tax or employment purposes; and not rush into commitments or decisions.
The event was timely, as the elderly population continues to grow. According to figures recently released by the U.S. Census Bureau, it will double by the year 2025.
With criminals focusing more on the elderly, the DA's office established a new Elder Fraud Unit program for Santa Clara County. The program assigns members of the district attorney's office to work in the field as community prosecutors.
In Campbell, Deputy District Attorney Matt Harris works elder fraud cases at a desk in the Campbell Police Department.
It was Harris, in conjunction with the CPD, and Sutton who set up the presentation at the senior complex, located at 1655 Winchester Ave.
Harris wanted the residents to be aware of his role in the community, which is to help the elderly community and provide ways to improve their quality of life.
Lin said the reason so many elderly people become victims is because criminals know they will tend not to report a crime out of shame--one out of every 14 crimes against the elderly goes unreported, which the DA's office believes is just the tip of the iceberg.
But it's the ethics of the elderly generation, that set them apart from more recent generations, Lin said. Qualities like integrity and trusting a person's word or a contract by handshake can ironically hurt and encourage criminals to target seniors.
"The crooks want to put the shame on them, but that's not where the shame belongs," Lin said. "The shame belongs on the ones who committed the crime."
For more information on reporting elder abuse, contact the following agencies: Adult Protective Services, 408.928.3860; Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program at Catholic Charities, 408.944 0567; or Campbell Community Prosecutions Unit, 408.792.2581. To stop unwanted junk mail, call 888.567.8688. To report a business complaint, contact the Consumer Protection Division of the DA's office at 408.792.2880.
|
|
|
|
Campbell, California
