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Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, noted last year that robocallers generated 26 billion unwanted calls reaching Americans’ mobile phones.
She said adding landline outreach grows that number to 48 billion calls.
One
of those people on the other line was Marjorie Jones, an 82-year-old
woman who committed suicide after giving up her life's savings to phone
scammers.
“They
told her she had won a large cash prize, and all she had to do was pay
the taxes and fees,” Angela Stancik, Jones’ granddaughter, explained to
lawmakers.
Stancik said she realized her grandmother was a victim of elder fraud in the last conversation she had with her.
She
needed $6,000 “as soon as possible,” and was desperate. The family
could never think of a time she needed to borrow money in the past.
“I could hear the panic in her voice, and she was very very afraid.”
Stancik’s
father had just wired $8,000 the week prior. He thought someone was
scamming her, but given her tone, he wired the $6,000.
Jones killed herself a week later.
“It is clear to us that the circumstances that led to her death were caused by these criminals,” Stancik said through tears.
Her
grandmother had bags of receipts in her closet that showed the money
sent to unknown accounts, took out a second mortgage on her home,
drained her life savings and cashed out all of her life insurance.
Federal authorities busted the elder fraud ring
last year, when then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the victims
targeted more than 1 million people living in the U.S.
Full Article & Source:
Elderly robocall scam victim committed suicide after 'fraudsters' stole life savings
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