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Sadly, older adults are among the most frequently targeted groups when it comes to financial fraud and scams. So much so that there’s now a term for it: “elder fraud” and the U.S. Department of Justice has set up an Elder Fraud hotline specifically for reporting incidents. Older adults are often targeted because we tend to be trusting and polite. We often have financial savings, own a home, and have good credit—all of which make them attractive to scammers.
This is a widespread problem but one that is particularly acute on the Cape & Islands because of our large older adult population. Over the past year, the Cape & Islands District Attorney’s office has received over 300 reported incidents of fraud perpetrated on older adults. District Attorney Rob Galibois notes that while many older adults have assets, their income is usually limited or fixed so that financial exploitation can quickly lead to housing instability. The money lost to financial crimes is also lost to the local economy, which the FBI says amounts to about $170,000,000 for southeast Massachusetts in 2024 alone.
On October 28th Protective Services Director Eddie Murphy represented ESCCI at the Elder Fraud and Abuse Awareness Summit at the Cape Cod Five headquarters in Hyannis. The event was one of several public forums created by Cape and Islands District Attorney Rob Galibois to raise awareness and build support for expanding the capacity of his office to prosecute these crimes. Of the 300 incidents reported last year, the District Attorney’s office only had enough resources to prosecute 15 of them.
Eddie shared the different types of exploitation and self-neglect cases involving scams the Protective Services staff are seeing daily, including gift card scams, romance scams, and cryptocurrency scams. Many older adults are reluctant to report being the victim of a scam out of embarrassment or concern that they might be deemed incompetent and lose their autonomy. Unfortunately, seniors with cognitive incapacity suffer the most economic loss. Additionally, some older adults may feel there is no point in reporting scams because they don’t think anything can be done.
In addition to Eddie and the D.A., this event included speakers from both law enforcement agencies and financial institutions, including Detective Kevin Connolley with the Barnstable Police Department, Matt Ott with the Federal Bureau of Investigations, Detective David Schneeweis with the Yarmouth Police Department, and representatives from Mass Bankers Association, Cape Cod Five Bank, Seamen's Bank, Cape and Coast Bank, and Martha’s Vineyard Bank.
Ongoing education and collaboration among agencies such as ESCCI, law enforcement, and financial institutions will be critical to combat elder fraud and abuse. The District Attorney’s Office is seeking additional state funding for the creation of a dedicated department for Elder Fraud and Abuse cases, with seasoned prosecutors, forensic investigators and victim/witness advocates. If you’d like to be part of this effort, sign up to receive updates here.
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