Elderly Scams in Lucca: 15 Attempts Foiled, One Victim Duped of Over 20.000 Euros

The phenomenon of scams targeting the elderly and the most vulnerable groups continues to be a subject of attention in the province of Lucca. Illegal people use now consolidated patterns, pretending to be members of the police force, false relatives in difficulty or representatives of supply companies. Among the most popular modes include the so-called “fake nephew scam,” call center phone scams, identity falsification, the “mirror trick,” tampered ATM cards, blocked banknotes, deceptive emails, fraudulent SMS, and online shopping scams.

Another increasingly popular ploy is the so-called “romance scam”, where scammers set up virtual relationships on social media to steal sensitive data and steal money from victims. Thanks to the widespread awareness campaign promoted by the Carabinieri throughout the Province, In the last few days, 15 scam attempts have been foiled. A path made of meetings in senior centers, in churches, before and after religious functions and in various community centres to reach as wide an audience as possible.

Among numerous attempts, on the same day, in Forte dei Marmi and Bagni di Lucca two elderly ladies received a phone call from fake policemen who, in an alarming tone, informed them of their daughter's involvement in a serious road accident. However, the old women, aware of the techniques used by scammers, they promptly verified the news by contacting the Single Emergency Number “112”. The Carabinieri of the station reached the ladies, reassuring them and complimenting them on their promptness.

Subsequently, the scammers managed to defraud an 87-year-old woman. from Camaiore. Always pretending to be policemen, with the usual excuse that the daughter had run over a pregnant woman and had to pay compensation for the damages, they were having cash and jewelry delivered for a value of over 20.000 euros. The Carabinieri renews the appeal to the citizens to remain vigilant and to promptly report suspicious episodes.