Help, I Need Bail Money: Nutley Resident Defrauded By Phony Phone Call, Police Say

What would you do if you got a call from someone claiming to be your family member, and asking for $1,800 to bail him out of jail?

Nutley police reported that on Nov. 23, a local resident received a call from a man claiming to be their grandson.

The caller said that he was in jail, had a broken nose and needed $1,800 for bail money, police said.

At that time, another person who claimed to be an attorney got on the phone and said that the victim’s grandson wouldn’t go to prison as long as she could wire the money through Western Union to a Massachusetts destination.

After the victim wired the requested funds, they never heard from their grandson, police said.

The next day, the victim’s daughter received a similar call, police said. This time, the called stated that he needed another $1,800 because the first deposit was not enough and there was a problem with the transaction, so the money was “wired to a different location in Massachusetts.”

The victim wired the called additional money for a total of $3,939, police said.

The victim then managed to contact their grandson, who said that he was not in jail and was safe, police said.

When the victim attempted to reach the phone number used for the incoming calls, it was no longer in service, police stated.

The victim subsequently opened up a fraud investigation with Western Union.

In the wake of the alleged fraud, Nutley Police Chief Thomas Strumolo urged residents to not send any money to anyone after receiving a questionable call, regardless of the urgency or immediacy.

Strumolo added that the “grandchild in trouble scam” is very popular, as are “IRS back payment requests and lottery winning insurance.”

Any concern regarding a caller’s authenticity should be verified with police, Strumolo said.