Police in B.C. are warning seniors and their loved ones about con artists preying on elderly people with family members who use social networking sites.
Abbotsford resident Jean Myrfield, 83, thought something wasn't right when she took a call from someone claiming to be a relative.
"I said, ‘Anne, it doesn't even sound like you.' And she said, ‘I'm so stressed. You just can't believe how bad it is here,'" Myrfield told CTV News.
The caller told Myrfield she was in a Montreal jail, facing drinking and driving charges.
Then, someone else came on the line.
"He came on and said, ‘I'm John Church and I'm the public defender here. I can help Anne, but she has to pay her fine.'"
The fine was for $4,000. Myrfield took out almost all of her life savings and wired the money.
She found out the next day that it was all a scam.
"When it's Anne, and being so fond of her, I just fell for it hook, line and sinker -- just so stupid. I don't know how I could be so gullible," Myrfield said.
At least seven local seniors have lost money because of similar scams, but police say the way they were targeted is the common link.
"Somebody gleans some information off of Facebook, from usually younger family members. They then look for extended family that are going to be older in age. They will start by getting phone numbers, find out where absences are going to occur for the younger person and then make contact with their older relative," Const. Ian MacDonald of the Abbotsford police said.
Police are warning that people need to be careful about what they post online.
"It's like having a billboard on a major freeway and telling everybody in the world what you're doing," MacDonald said.
Myrfield and her husband received another call from a scammer this week. This time, she told them they had the wrong number.
"They're just plain evil," she said.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Michele Brunoro
