Maria Bilyk would do anything for her grandchildren.
And with grandchildren that live out of town, she wanted to attend the Thunder Bay Police Service's information session on the Grandson Scam, a scam that is meant to swindle seniors out of thousands of dollars.
The scam consists of a stranger calling a senior and posing as their grandson; they say they are in trouble, they've been in an accident and need money for bail or to pay for damages.
They also say to keep it a secret, not to tell any other family members and to send the money through a money transfer service.
Wednesday's information session at the Mary J.L. Black Library was something every grandparent should see, said Bilyk.
"(My grandchildren) send me emails and they call me sometime but I could be easily fooled. If they're in trouble, of course I'd help them out," said Bilyk.
"I'd do anything for my grandchildren, anything they'd ask."
Det. Const. Diane MacLaurin is the city police's crimes against seniors officer and said the Grandson Scam is one of the most prevalent senior scams in Canada and the United States.
In Thunder Bay, she's investigated 20 cases where somebody has been a victim of the scam and generally only 10 per cent of these frauds are reported.
"It continues to be a prevalent scam because it preys on the fact that you're going to try to assist your grandchild," MacLaurin said.
"As long as fraudsters keep making money on it, it's going to be a scam that keeps happening."
If someone gets a phone call from someone claiming to be a grandchild and asks for money, MacLaurin said they should ask questions that only their grandchild would be able to answer and call their grandchild and make sure it was in fact them who called.
And never send money until their story has been verified.
