Belchertown Police warning residents of scheme that’s targeting elderly

BELCHERTOWN, Mass. (WWLP) – The Belchertown Police Department is warning residents of a recent scheme that has been taking place in town.

According to the Belchertown Police Department, residents have been reporting that they have been reached out to in multiple different ways, either on the phone or through the computer. These calls have been made to get an elicit response from the victim, and when people reply to these calls, the person on the other end will create a fake story, and will also be demanding.

The stories that they make up are trying to get the caller to go to their bank and take out large amounts of money. They then tell the victim to go to a location that has a Bitcoin ATM and have them deposit the money to a fake account.

Once the money is put into the account, the person on the phone is able to control the money, which means it is being stolen from the caller. Bitcoin is a digital form of currency, which makes it even harder to retrieve this money once it is deposited. It has also been reported that the schemers request the callers to scan their driver’s licenses for them, which means their identity is in danger. Do not fall for these schemes.

These schemes have been targeted toward the elderly population, so if someone you know is 60 years old and older and has been a victim of fraud, the National Elder Fraud Hotline can help by calling 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311) or you can contact them online at www.justice.gov/stopelderfraud.