Houlton Police warn of scams

HOULTON, Maine — The Houlton Police Department is urging area residents to be wary of any individuals calling your home, claiming to be a relative that is in jail and in need of bail money.
“The Houlton Police Department wants to remind local residents about a fraud scheme that continues to create victims in northern Maine, as well as across the country,” Houlton Police Chief Butch Asselin said. “The scam has been victimizing elderly people for approximately four or five years and is commonly known as the ‘Grandson Scheme.’”
    Scammers often target elderly people, stating they are their grandson and have been arrested or detained either in Canada or in the U.S. near the Canadian border. Among the common stories are the person was arrested for operating under the influence or driving while intoxicated. Another story often used is a friend was in possession of drugs when they entered Canada and they are being detained.
“The scammers will start with a request for bail money then continue with attorney’s fees, medical fees, or fines,” the chief said. “They pose as police officer’s and lawyers and instruct the grandparent not to tell the parents and not to deal with anyone else but the officer. The victims often think the real authorities are the bad guys when they try to inform them about being a victim of a scam.”
Asselin said these types of scams are being run out of Canada and involve Canadians coming into the U.S. to pick up money. They often say the bail bondsman is on vacation in Haiti, Spain or Mexico and need the money sent overseas.
The HPD has received a couple of complaints from local residents in recent weeks about these types of phone calls. The last incident reported was on June 16 involving a 65-year-old male. In this particular case, the caller identified himself as a law enforcement officer, provided a name and a call-back number.
“The ‘officer’ indicated that [the victim’s] grandson had been arrested and $3,400 was needed to bail him out,” Asselin said. “The gentleman went to Western Union and was prepared to wire the $3,400 to Haiti, but the clerk felt something was wrong and wouldn’t complete the transaction. The gentleman called his grandson and he was in his office working.”
Similar cases were reported on May 25 and April 30, 2010, but no transfer of money occurred. However, in March 2010, a Houlton woman was conned out of $3,000 in a similar scheme.
“If you know of this activity taking place, please contact the police department immediately,” the chief said. “The police department receives a dozen calls or more per year from area residents reporting possible scams. Like many crimes affecting the elderly, I suspect there have been more instances of this scam being perpetuated against area residents that go unreported. Often these crimes go unreported to police because of embarrassment or the feeling that nothing can be done.”
Once money is sent, it is virtually impossible to trace and is seldom recovered, the chief said.
Drug problem
Another potential issue the HPD is warning about is safeguarding prescription medicine in your home.
“People need to take precautions when storing their medications,” Asselin said. “Because medicine cabinets are the first place a person looks for drugs, I would strongly recommend not storing pharmaceuticals in your medicine cabinet. If we think of our medicine cabinet as being a drug cabinet, we soon realize that we have a potential target for a possible theft or burglary. Store your medication in an area that offers limited access to people visiting or working at your home.”
While not currently an issue locally, law enforcement has seen a crime trend whereby people pose as an interested buyer of a home currently listed on the real estate market. These so-called potential buyers routinely check out the home’s bathroom and bedrooms. If the realtor becomes distracted or is in another room, the contents of your medicine cabinet or nightstand become a potential target. Realtors prefer the seller not be in the home when showing it. Safeguard the medication like you would your credit card, jewelry or cash, the chief said.
“Teenagers will often check the medicine cabinet of family or relatives looking for narcotics,” Asselin continued. “The medications are then taken for personal use, sold or shared with friends at parties. Over 80 percent of abused prescriptions come from the medicine cabinets of family who fail to properly safeguard or dispose of used medication that were prescribed to them.”
The Houlton Police Department encourages residents to take advantage of a free program that allows citizens to dispose of their dated or unused medications by bringing them to the station.
“The Drug Take Back Program is slowly gaining momentum in northern Maine,” Asselin said. “The attitudes of people are slowly changing. Not everyone thinks it is necessary to keep their medication in a cabinet in case of an emergency or to get their money’s worth. Realizing the improper disposal of medications harms our environment or your medication may cause a child to have an overdose if accidentally ingested or stolen, the department is seeing an annual increase in the amount of drugs that are being brought in.”
In April, the department turned over 10 cardboard boxes to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration for disposal. These drugs were collected within a six-month window. Aroostook County came in second in the state of Maine for the number of pounds turned in.
For more information on these or other crimes, visit the department’s website at www.houltonpolice.com.