Ancona. The Municipality and the Police Headquarters are launching an information campaign for the elderly to pay attention to scams.

The information campaign conducted by the Police Headquarters and the Municipality regarding the risk of scams against them begins with a letter that will be sent to all the elderly people of Ancona, a social phenomenon that is becoming increasingly important and in which the awareness of the danger, knowledge of the tools and information on the correct behavior to follow.

The advices

The letter, signed by the mayor Daniele Silvetti and the police commissioner Cesare Capocasa, shares with the citizens three simple tips, which however are the basis of a behavior that is certainly deterrent to scam attempts: avoid opening the door to strangers and do not give information to strangers on the telephone, in case of emergency contact the single European number 112, which will allow you to receive timely support from the operators both in the event of a request for urgent intervention and to report any scam attempts.

In its first phase, the project will be aimed at 2259 people over 85 who live alone and includes both the sending of the letter and some "door-to-door" meetings with the elderly.

The interventions of the Ancona Police Headquarters

"Information and awareness-raising activities regarding now structural phenomena such as bullying, including its most deadly and modern form of cyber bullying, gender violence and the hateful phenomenon of scams targeting the elderly - explains Police Commissioner Cesare Capocasa – were included in the themes of promoting legality during meetings in schools and on the occasion of dedicated events, creating a synergistic action between all the actors involved, with the aim of guaranteeing the timely exchange of information, care and support for victims.
Since the beginning of the school year and in collaboration with the Provincial Educational Office, we have met approximately 4.000 students as part of the "Let's educate together with legality" project which has been widespread throughout the provincial territory, in collaboration with Confartigianato, 20.000 information brochures, aware that some vulnerable groups, primarily the elderly, need paper material to gain knowledge and reflect on the varied problems relating to their safety.
This is tangible evidence of the path of prevention and education on legality that we try to undertake every day in this province, in close synergy with other actors, committed to curbing these disturbing phenomena. On this occasion, in agreement with the Mayor, it was decided to undertake a further, and even more incisive, initiative to protect the elderly, arriving at their homes with a letter rather than through "door to door" meetings, hoping that this "shock therapy" can significantly reduce this hateful phenomenon".

An open channel for difficult situations

"The letter - explains Mayor Silvetti – it is a first step of openness towards the weakest citizens regarding this problem. The desire is to create a channel, a direct line between citizens and institutions, which on the one hand contributes to making potential victims aware and, on the other, gives them certainty about possible interventions. You need to be careful to prevent scams, but in case of problems, you shouldn't be afraid to report even apparently illegal behaviour. In this way, in addition to helping oneself, one also contributes to supporting the police by reporting concrete problems, where they arise, and therefore multiplying the possibilities for intervention. For this reason, I thank the Police Commissioner for his availability for this collaboration which we believe is fundamental within an idea of ​​city government that always puts people first and foremost".

“This is the second initiative – explains the deputy mayor and safety councilor Giovanni Zinni – which the Municipality implements to combat fraud against the elderly. After the first step last year, with this initiative conceived by the Police Commissioner it allows us a leap forward because it will allow us to directly reach many elderly people.
The safety of citizens is at the center of our government policies and in this sense the important operational arm of the Municipality is the local police, to which in recent months we have been dedicating particular attention, both with the implementation of personnel and with the provision of effective tools to be operational in the territory. Likewise, attention to the constant and direct relationship with citizens is central. I remember that one of the first declarations of Commander Marco Ivano Caglioti, as soon as he took over the leadership of the Ancona command, concerned precisely the need for discussion with people, who can give concrete indications on the most important critical issues and who have, at the same time, the right to feel protected and protected from conduct that is harmful to their rights and tranquility. This concept applies very closely to the topic of scams targeting the elderly, especially because, in this case, we are talking about a segment of the population that could tend to have a greater need for support.".

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