OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – Seniors in Nebraska lose more money per scam than in any other state.
Last year, seniors in the state lost an average of nearly $4,000 per scam, according to a new analysis of Federal Trade Commission data.
Joyce and Jim Gamble nearly fell victim to a scam more than a year ago. The scammer said Joyce needed to withdraw $9,000 from the bank — more than double the average amount seniors lose to a scam in Nebraska.
“I got a phone call from this guy who said that my husband was.. going to be arrested unless we pay this money,” Joyce Gamble said.
How the scam worked
The scammer gave directions to a crypto ATM machine and told her to convert the money into crypto and send it to his digital wallet. Joyce and Jim followed his instructions.
“We didn’t know how to work the machine, so he’s telling us over the phone which buttons to push to get the money to go in there,” Joyce said.
They were one click away from finalizing the transaction when a good Samaritan snatched the phone.
“He just started saying something like, this is Officer Johnson. And then, click. They hung up. And so, he was our guardian angel that day, you know,” Joyce said.
Joyce and Jim were moments away from losing thousands of dollars. There were thousands of other reported scams targeting seniors last year alone.
“He’s targeting seniors because we’re so vulnerable. You know, there’s a lot of people that have already been scammed, and they’ve been scammed again,” Joyce said.
Advice for potential victims
The couple has advice for people who might be close to giving out a large sum of money.
“I would say if they talk money, I’d slow down and think. Slow down, take about two deep breaths and make sure, you know, no, you don’t want to do this. Just don’t jump in and say yeah,” Jim said.
Their hope this fraud awareness month is to save others from falling for the same trap.
“It would be a success if we could stop one person from getting scammed,” Joyce Gamble said.
AARP and the Better Business Bureau said seniors are often targets of scams involving crypto ATMs. They are often asked to withdraw money from the bank and deposit it into a crypto ATM. That is because crypto is hard to trace.
No law enforcement agency will ever call to ask for money or sensitive information.
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