Posted on 05/23/2014 4:27:59 PM PDT by Allen In Texas Hill Country
We stopped answering unknown phone calls a long long time ago. But I was outside and the wife, expecting a call, did answer the call. Trying to make a long story short.....
It was from a family member whom we care enough about that we would do almost anything for. The wife was convinced it was from this family member and when she told me she convinced me too. A few phone calls later involving public attorneys and lawyers we were told to send a very large sum of CASH using UPS.
And then,,,, FINALLY,,, I realized this was a scam. But the knowledge about the details of our particular family structure (a bit different) scares the hell out of us. We called the sheriffs office and gave them the details of the phone numbers used in the scam. The main one of which came from Montreal, Quebec. I did the reverse search after realizing.
Just posting to help others.
I will never stop posting, I want to find a way to keep posting even after I am dead. lol
I have not received these but everyone in my email account got an email saying I was robbed and was stranded in Lomdon. This was 4 or 5 years ago. A cousin’s wife got one and knew it was fake due to some wording in it. Some people need to get a real life.
Enjoy your peaceful and stress-free life.
Priceless! That’s where I got my idea!
One unofficial event that Tom Mabe is best known for took place when telemarketers gathered in Washington D.C. with the hopes of discouraging any laws that would prevent telemarketing. Mabe found out exactly where the telemarketers were staying, and he checked into the same hotel. He even found out what rooms they were staying in. Mabe then took the initiative to call the telemarketers at 3 a.m. to pretend and sell them sleeping pills. This occurrence allowed his audience from Paul Harvey to The New York Times to announce that Tom Mabe was their new hero.[6]
Since you say that you recognized the family member, I’m taking that to mean that your family member was “in on the scam”.
This kind of thing is usually directed at elderly people with the caller saying they are a grandson or nephew, etc. and are in jail, they’re scared, and need money right away, please help me grandma. Someone tried this on my mom and was very convincing, but as soon as she told them “ now you know I can’t spend that kind of money without talking it over with your grandpa” they hung up.
.. and I'd happily give 'em the second tap just to be sure.
This one has actually been around for a while. These scammers are vultures.
All they have to do is keep changing their phone number, rent a place cheap, collect checks from vulnerable people, usually older.
My sister-in-law’s Mom got taken for $1800 on this one.
Says my computer has been infected with a virus and I need to get online right away and they will walk me through the steps to remove it.
My response: Oh my God! Sure, hang on. Then go pour a cold beer and go work in the garden.
Caller ID showed the number as 505-349-4654 which I now blocked.
Normally wouldn't even have answered it but I was running an ad on Craigslist. Craigslist has turned into a major scam magnet but I did eventually sell my goods at my price (yes it was for cash).
TMI. Become a better person. You will garner better friends.
I got that call before, my sister was very concerned but I told her it was a scam
Because almost all phone calls are routed through Internet switches a good hacker can make a phone call appear to be coming from anywhere: Texas, Washington DC, Tokyo... All while calling from Pakistan.
I never ever buy, borrow, lend, or sell to family, friends or neighbors
= = = = = = = = = = = =
All that plus I ‘love’ my family so much that I am carrying on an old family tradition that guarantees that there will be absolutely NO arguing or fighting over some inheritance or anything of any great value.
When in the Asphalt business I would not only not do a neighbors driveway, if at all possible they figured that IF I WORKED, it must have been in some kind of ‘illegal’ operation that they figured not a good idea to talk to me about it.
One of my ‘favorite’ answers to the age old question
“WHAT do you do for a living?”
AS A rule, I generally mind my own f’n business.
We will keep it ‘clean’ by not going into what my answer is/was to ‘How much do you make’.....<: <:
No, it wasn’t the family member but somehow the individual sounded like them. But he did say he had a cold.
I cultivate close relationships with family friends and neighbors where things are given back and forth freely but only once we’re close enough to understand that nothing is owed beyond respect.
Pretty much the scenario. After we realized what was going on and got the last call the wife told them I was on an airplane with the money and a lawyer so where do we deliver it? She/they hung up.
www.800notes.com is a good site to research numbers. LOTS of folks input numbers and info for scam calls they’ve received.
Generally...I get a call from a suspicious number, I google the number.
Not so peaceful, people are still calling and messages still need to be checked and the phone keeps ringing and still needs to be pulled out and checked.
I quit carrying my phone and will soon be rid of it entirely.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.