Crimes against the Elderly
The US has a rapidly growing elderly population. And, unfortunayley, the number of elderly people being victimized by criminals has grown rapidly as well. Scams again the elderly are crimes we don't get to map much - they normally show up as theft or assault - but we would like to bring more attention to them. Most elderly victims are over the age of 75 and depend on other people. The need for personal assistance increases with age. Also with age, the less 'in tune' with the world an older person becomes. A lot of older people are more financially concerned (especially if they are retired), so it would be easier to scam someone into giving away private healthcare information or billing information. This leaves an elderly person very vulnerable and an easy target. For example, a recent scam in Stafford County, VA included a phone scam where someone pretended to be the person's grandchild. The 'grandchild' would convince the grandparent that the...