A scammer’s efforts to defraud a Chatham senior out of hundreds of dollars were thwarted recently thanks to the quick thinking of staff at Cash Money.
The senior, who is not being named, called The Chatham Voice to warn others about the scam that nearly got her.
She said she received a call supposedly from VISA, and the man on the other end of the line quickly convinced her there was a financial foul up over an eBay transaction – to the tune of about $2,700. To remedy the situation, she’d have to pay $700.
The woman, who said she doesn’t even have an eBay account, admitted the scammer’s reference to possible involvement of the RCMP in the matter unnerved her.
The senior wound up heading to Cash Money on Grand Avenue in Chatham to make a money transfer.
That’s where the staff helped convince her it was a scam attempt. They asked her questions she didn’t have the answers for, and then managed to talk to the scam artist on the phone.
The senior said the rapid-fire questions led to the man hanging up on the Cash Money personnel.
Melissa Soper, senior vice president of public affairs for Cash Money, said staff at the Chatham outlet were just glad they could help.
“We were happy that we were able to intervene in this issue and save our customer from being defrauded,” she said. “As a money service business, our customer service agents are trained in anti-money laundering and other important areas of compliance and risk assessment. We strive to provide safe, convenient access to financial services and, helping the members of the communities in which we do business is at the heart of our mission.”
The unnamed senior said she was so happy to have the help of the Cash Money staff, she went out and bought them cookies.
