Crime & Safety
Cedar Grove Senior Loses $7K To ‘Grandson’ Phone Scammer
An elderly Cedar Grove man lost $7,000 to a phone scammer who claimed to be his grandson, police say.
CEDAR GROVE, NJ — An elderly Cedar Grove man lost $7,000 to a phone scammer who claimed to be his grandson earlier this month, police say.
According to the Cedar Grove Police Department, the incident took place on Oct. 2 when the resident received a call from a person claiming to be his grandson.
The caller said that he was in police custody because of an accident and couldn’t be released unless his grandfather paid for the damages. He told his grandfather to purchase Best Buy gift cards and provide him with the PIN numbers, police stated.
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The victim complied and lost about $7,000 before he realized it was a scam and the caller wasn’t his grandson, police said.
Cedar Grove police are investigating the incident.
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Photo: Flickr Commons / Sean MacEntee
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