Foothills residents are being advised of, yet, another phone scam making the rounds this holiday season, targeting family members of alleged accident victims.

High River's Shelley van den Bos, says her parents were almost convinced to send large amounts of money to a family member after receiving a phone call about an unfortunate rear end accident.

"The fellow on the phone started the conversation asking, "do you know who this is," and she said yes, my grandson. He proceeded to say that he had been in an accident, and that he'd rear ended a fellow in a rental car from Montreal, and if he paid the fellow $8900, he wouldn't press charges," she said.

The elderly couple consulted with van den Bos before making any further moves, where it was discovered the couple's grandson was in school, and not the caller her parents were convinced was their grandson.

Surprisingly, the caller made a second phone call to attempt to collect the funds, as the elderly couple asked the caller to phone back so they could speak with van den Bos.

"The fellow said, "are you going to be able to help me Grandma," and she said they would have to talk to Aunty, and then they hung up. They created such a sense of urgency, and my mom is a senior citizen, so she's automatically jumping into how can we help them mode, without even thinking about asking all the questions," said van den Bos.

She says both her parents were certain by the sound of the voice on the call that it was their grandson, which is equally alarming.

"It's tough, because they're phoning and playing on your emotions. And, it is Christmas, people are emotional, and that sense of urgency is something people really need to be cautious of. When you're being pressured to do something, or make that quick decision, then that's really the time to stop and take a step back," said van den Bos.

 

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