94-year-old exploited in Hamilton’s grandparents scam

Two people in Quebec have been charged after a 94-year-old man from Hamilton was exploited for ‘grandparent fraud’.

On November 1, a man impersonating an RCMP police officer contacted the victim and told him that his grandson had been arrested for having a large amount of drugs in his car, investigators said.

The caller demanded that the victim pay a bond of $120,000 for the release of his grandson.

Another man was then called pretending to be his 94-year-old grandson. According to police, the scammer desperately begged the victim to pay the security deposit.

“Out of concern for his grandson, the victim has agreed to pay part of the requested bail,” Hamilton Police said in a news release issued Thursday.

“The monetary loss suffered was minimal due to the financial institution that intervened when the victim tried to withdraw money from his account.”

Investigators said later that day, a woman disguised as a court courier went to the victim’s home to collect the money.

The victim was informed at that point that she was under a gag order in court and was not allowed to speak to anyone about the transaction. If you do that, your grandson will not be released.

The next day, the victim received a call from the suspect demanding the remaining security deposit. Police said he was instructed to put the money in an envelope and leave it in an undisclosed location.

“At this point, the victim became suspicious and called Hamilton Police,” investigators said.

On Thursday, police said two suspects had been detained in connection with the incident.

Quebec residents Emmanuel Dimotakis, 19, and Daniel Gallucci, 21, were each charged with fraud of over $5,000. Dimotakis faces additional charges of impersonating a peace officer.

The allegations have not been proven in court.

Police say they are still looking for additional female suspects in the scam. Anyone with information has been asked to contact the police or anonymously contact Crime Stopper.

Investigators have also warned that police will not collect money in court.