Scams continue to plague residents, say police

A family member has been kidnapped, says the caller. A loved one is in jail and needs bail money. A military man met on a dating site needs money to send his belongings home from overseas. These are just a few of the scams that Harvard residents have recently reported to the Harvard Police Department, Detective Daniele Fortunato told the Press in an interview this week. Sometimes scams are reported before money is wired to the scammer, but sometimes the police don’t find out until it’s too late. Once the money has been sent, Fortunato said, “it’s gone.”

Fortunato said that last year was the worst year ever for scams. They have slowed down a bit this year, she said, but the police typically receive multiple scam reports every week. Officer Tim Miner, also present at the interview, said victims who send money to scammers are of all ages, although the elderly are more likely to send money. He added that those who send money come from all walks of life, including the highly educated. Fortunato said scams involving senior citizens are reported to the Council on Aging (COA). Debbie Thompson, director of the COA, said that some seniors are more vulnerable to identity theft and scams because they have many health-care and home-care employees in their homes on a regular basis. She added that the COA will go to bat for any senior who is the victim of a scam. The council advocated for two cases last year and was able to restore the money lost to the seniors involved, although the perpetrators were never found.

Victims of recent scams in Harvard include a family who used a hotel computer to send health insurance information necessary to get treatment for a family member who was ill. Data from that exchange was stored in small files called cookies on the computer and later used by someone to hack into the family’s bank account and steal money. Another resident was tempted by an advertisement for a rental property asking for very low rent. The resident was told to leave the first month’s rent payment in the mailbox, and it would be picked up by a courier. The money disappeared, but the property was not for rent.

Fortunato said the police want to be notified of any scam where money is lost, when there is an attempt to access a bank account, or if the caller makes a threat. She said they don’t need to be notified if a resident knows a phone call is a scam, such as the frequent scam where a caller claims the victim owes money to the Internal Revenue Service and will be arrested if payment is not made. Fortunato said the IRS never calls anyone about money owed; it always sends notices in the mail.

The police acknowledge that there is not much they can do locally about scams. “It’s a global problem,” said Fortunato. “They use computers with rotating IP addresses, and spoof cards to call people. We don’t have the resources to deal with issues like that.” But the police want residents to know that they can call the station at 978-456-8276 (not the dispatch number) with any questions or concerns about incidents thought to be scams or possible identity theft.