Dubuque Police received another report of an area resident recently being scammed out of several thousand dollars.
The elderly victim received a call from a person purporting himself as a family member, claiming he had been arrested in Canada and needed money to get out of jail. The victim sent a substantial amount of cash via wired money order and then called the number he was provided and was told to send more money. The victim attempted to wire additional money, but was stopped by an employee who advised him to call authorities.
This particular scam has been in existence for several years. There are also many variations of this scam, but prevention measures remain the same: always take a few moments to verify legitimacy prior to sending requested money or providing personal information of any kind. A little research (usually in the form of a quick phone call or some investigation online) can save you a lot of money and almost always prevent you from being scammed.