An 80-year-old Bakersfield woman said she was scammed out of thousands of dollars after callers convinced her to empty most of her bank account, leaving her without enough money for surgeries.
The woman, who did not want to be named, said the scammers contacted her by phone and claimed to be investigators looking into alleged criminal activity at her local bank branch. She said they told her that if she made a transaction into a “dummy account,” she would receive a free subscription to LifeLock in return.
She said she went into the bank while still on the phone with the scammers and completed the transaction into an account the scammers had set up. Now, she said she is upset bank employees did not stop the transaction or ask questions before she transferred the money. She said she has been a customer of the bank for more than 50 years.
“I sat and cried. I’m not the type to sit and cry,” she said.
The woman also questioned why her situation did not raise concerns at the bank. “When you’re 80 years old and you’re walking with a cane and you’re limping along and you’re not smiling because you’re being hacked and they’re listening to you, wouldn’t that be a little bit suspicious?” she said.
The Kern County Sheriff’s Office is investigating. The agency said people should hang up on suspicious phone calls or say they want to confirm with the Sheriff’s Office.
“If there is a sense of urgency, they don’t want to let you off the phone, that’s a red flag,” said Lori with the Kern County Sheriff’s Office.
Officials said criminals tend to target the elderly.
“I think a lot of our elderly community and then our 18 year olds, they’re just more concerned about the consequences being presented to them from the scammer that they become so scared they comply,” Lori said.
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The Kern County Sheriff’s Office said there have been scams involving bank employees in the past. Anyone with information about this case or others can call KCSO at 661-861-3110.