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In the past year, elderly victims have been scammed out of more than $130 million in San Diego County, according to the DA’s Office.
SAN DIEGO — Chris Heise won’t forget his birthday in May of 2024.
It was the same day he received a pop-up message he thought was from Microsoft, alerting him that his computer had been compromised.
The message included a phone number to call.
“A young lady was there, and she said, ‘Oh, I need to hand you over to a fraud investigator for Chase Bank,” recalled Heise. “It was the urgency of, ‘Don’t hang up with us. We need to get this straightened out for you.’ It just became more and more believable, because these people were just so, so well rehearsed.”
“I still remember their names, you know, ‘Monica and David,’ you know, they were faxing over identification to us, fake badges and so forth,” he added. “We were told they would deposit the money into a Federal Trade Commission locker for safekeeping. Our money would be returned once their investigation was completed. Of course, our money was gone.”
Unfortunately, Heise and his wife were scammed out of $35,000. They are part of a growing number of senior victims across San Diego County who have fallen for online and phone scams. According to the San Diego County District Attorney’s office, losses in the past year have totaled $130 million in the county alone.
“We want San Diegans across this county to understand the scope of the threat and provide strategies on protecting yourself and your family and loved ones,” said DA Summer Stephan.
In response to the growing threat, officials have launched a new campaign urging seniors to “Stop. Hang Up. Tell Someone.” — encouraging older adults to remain vigilant and skeptical of unsolicited phone calls, text messages, and emails.
DA Stephan said scammers are often part of international organized crime networks. They employ a variety of tactics to deceive their targets. They frequently impersonate banks or PayPal, claiming to have detected suspicious account activity or unauthorized transactions. Others pose as law enforcement officials, warning that a victim’s social security number has been linked to drug trafficking or money laundering. Some fraudsters send fake security alerts appearing to originate from Microsoft or Apple, directing victims to call a specific number.
“The urgency to act and isolation from family and friends are very bright red flags everyone should be aware of,” said Mark Dargis, FBI Special Agent-in-Charge, San Diego.
He said seniors are being targeted at an unprecedented rate.
Heise and his wife volunteer with Frosted Faces, helping senior dogs get adopted.
They contacted the authorities and recovered half of their money.
“Thankfully, I took a photo of the courier and his vehicle when he picked up the money, which was critical to the apprehension of the culprit,” said Heise.
But he admits, falling for the scam was embarrassing.
“My wife and I, at that moment, made a pact. We weren’t going to tell anyone about this, just because of the shame, the embarrassment. I figured my father was probably rolling over in his grave, you know, thinking that, ‘How could my son be so gullible?'” he said.
He didn’t tell the rest of his family until recently. And he said he did so, only because he agreed to share his story publicly. However, he said his family has been supportive.
“If something like this happens to you, don’t be afraid to stop, hang up, and call someone. I’m here today after setting aside my pride and embarrassment in hopes I can help at least one person or couple avoid the trauma my wife and I experienced,” said Heise.
Authorities urge anyone who’s been a victim of an online or phone scam to contact local police and the FBI San Diego.
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