Resident Falls Prey to Phone Scam

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By Andrea Adelson | LB Indy

Police say an astute store clerk who advised a customer against buying $7,000 worth of gift cards helped avert a second loss by the elderly patron, who had already distributed a first round of gift cards to con artists.

The elderly woman’s son told police suspects called his mother and demanded funds to satisfy an IRS debt. She was directed to purchase $7,000 worth of gift cards and activate them and provided the numbers to the suspects, who called her back, Capt. Jason Kravetz said.

When the suspects called again and directed the woman to purchase another $7,000 in gift cards, a clerk asked about the purchase and suggested to the customer she was being scammed and told her to contact her family and not send any more, said Kravetz, who could not identify the store involved.

The suspects spoke with a strong accent, which led the victim to believe they might be calling from outside the country, Kravetz said.

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