"She has nothing:" Woman hands over thousands in lottery scam
DALLAS (WITI) — Foreign lottery scams are wiping out the savings of millions of Americans. The elderly who live alone are prime targets.
"She has nothing. I have to bring food to her. I've had to pay a number of her bills. It's been a very difficult situation for both us," said Bob, the son of a fraud victim.
Bob's mother lost more than $250,000 after receiving solicitations and phone calls from persistent con-artists.
Lottery scam "winner's" application form
The claim? The scammers guaranteed Bob's mother that she would win the lottery — all she had to do was send a small fee for the winning program.
"People would pay $67 to $109 depending on what level they'd like to participate in this particular group," explained U.S. Postal Inspector Amanda McMurrey.
Another flyer claimed "The Lotto Max-356 Super Computer" could predict winning state lottery numbers, but it was all a scam.
"She comes from a generation of people trusting what people say because your reputation was everything. Nowadays, reputations don’t matter to people. They just want the money," Bob said.
In end, Bob's mother lost everything.
"She no longer owns her house. She got a reverse mortgage and sent that money in cash through the U.S. mail," Bob explained.
Bob urged postal inspectors to speak to his mother about the scam.
"It's very painful for him because he remembers his mother as a strong individual that went through a lot of things in her life and worked hard for her retirement money she had. And, now to see her with virtually nothing left is very difficult for him," McMurrey said.
Lottery scam's "guarantee" that winning numbers could be predicted
Despite losing it all, Bob's mother still believes she can win.
"She once told me recently, 'not everybody can be a crook,' and I said, 'Well, Mom, so far 100% of them have been crooks and they seem to have your number,'” Bob said.
Right now, Bob is exploring legal options for taking over his mother's finances. Meanwhile, it's a daily struggle.
"I can't monitor her. She lives too far away. I'm trying to get her to move to this house," said Bob.
Bob's story is a reminder: no legitimate lottery will ever ask for money, fees or taxes upfront.