25 Canadians charged in multimillion-dollar American ‘grandparent scam’ [Video]

Dozens of Canadians are facing charges for scamming millions of dollars out of elders in the U.S., according to the office of the acting state attorney for Vermont. The victims span from almost every state in the country.

The backstory:

On Feb. 20, a federal grand jury charged 25 Canadian nationals with participating in a “grandparent scam” between the summer of 2021 and June 4, 2024.

According to the unsealed indictment, those individuals made fraudulent calls from call centers in and around Montréal.

During those calls, the suspects claimed to be related to the elderly victims, usually claiming to be a grandchild. They would say they had been arrested after a car crash and desperately needed money to post bail.

Some of the suspects would pretend to be a lawyer representing a loved one. They would tell the victim there was a “gag order” that prevented the victim from telling anyone about …