Grandma Targeted by Money Wire Scam

A helpful employee at Jewel Foods called police over concerns that an 81-year-old Tinley Park woman was the victim of a money wire scam.

The woman told police that she was contacted at 10 a.m. on Nov. 8 by someone who sounded like her grandson, according to a Tinley Park police report. 

"Grandma, I need money for a flight home from Mexico," the voice on the phone told the woman. "I need $1705.55 sent to Mexico City."

The elderly victim sent the money through MoneyGram to the location in Mexico and returned to her Tinley Park home, the report states. The next day, she received another call from the same person claiming to be her grandson, asking for more money to spend an extra couple of days in Mexico.

During a visit to Jewel Foods, a staff member told the woman she believed it was a scam and contacted police, the report states.

Cops called the grandson, who said he was currently at home, wasn't in Mexico and had actually never visited that country.

Police report information is provided by the Tinley Park Police Department and other law enforcement agencies. Charges are not evidence of guilt. They are a record of police actions on a given day, and persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. If you or a family member are charged or cited and the case is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to notify the editor. We will verify and report the outcome.