Now more than ever senior citizens should be on guard for scammers looking to make quick money during the coronavirus pandemic, which is why Winter Park Police Chief Michael Deal decided to share a recent story about grandparents in his community who were scammed out of $16,000.

“It's important to get this information out now,” said Deal. “Hopefully, it keeps one person from falling prey to all these scams and this can be a teachable moment.”

Criminals called the senior couple in Winter Park, claiming to be their granddaughter and her lawyer on Sept. 3, according to Deal. The chief told Fox News that the criminals claimed the granddaughter had been in an accident and needed $16,000 in cash to bail her out of jail. The grandfather withdrew the money from the bank and the criminals sent a courier to their home to collect the cash.

The victims, whose names were not disclosed, realized they had been scammed hours later when they spoke with their granddaughter on the phone and learned that there had been no accident or arrest. Deal said the victims then waited until the end of the day to contact the Winter Park police because they were embarrassed.

Continue reading at Fox News.