Lakewood Employee Stops Scammers From Targeting Elderly Man

LAKEWOOD, CO — A Lakewood code enforcement officer was off duty when he went out of his way to stop an elderly man from becoming the next victim of a phone scam, the city said.

Juan Bonilla-Acosta stopped by a convenience store and saw an elderly man "acting frantic" while on his cell phone, according to the Lakewood Good News Blog.

Bonilla-Acosta noticed that the man was trying to find a gift card to buy.

"Gift cards have become a frequent target of scam artists that involve phone calls demanding residents buy gift cards to resolve some made-up issue or crisis," the blog read.

"The elderly have often been the target of these scams, with callers claiming the senior owes money to the Internal Revenue Service or that a relative needs money to get out of jail."

Bonilla-Acosta asked the man why he needed a gift card, the city said.

"The man told Juan he had to buy a card because the electric company had contacted him and threatened to turn off his power if he failed to do so. Juan was able to get the man to hang up the cellphone and then took the time to explain to him that he was being scammed."

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Bonilla-Acosta then saw a Lakewood police car and let officers know what happened, and they were able to speak with the elderly man and confirm that indeed, he had been targeted for fraud.

"Through Juan’s observations and actions, the elderly man avoided becoming a victim of a scam," the city's blog read.

"Juan’s quick thinking and intervention into a situation that didn’t look right exemplifies a level of excellence and a commitment to the meaning of public service."

Read the full city blog story here.