Elderly residents of Madera County take heed, Sheriff John Anderson warned Tuesday, as phone and mail lottery scams continue to bilk residents out of thousands of dollars with the promise of false riches.
Anderson pointed to a recent example, where a male victim in Oakhurst received more than 40 phone calls in a two-day period from the same phone number with an outside area code of 876.
“Area code 876 is the local telephone area code of Jamaica,” Anderson said. “The 876 area code has become notorious with lottery and sweepstake fraud calls to announce lottery winnings.”
The victim was told by phone that he had entered a $2.5 million drawing, Anderson said, and he opted to receive $2,500 worth of merchandise. But, in order to receive those winnings the victim had to wire $1,000 to a person named Joe Campbell in Los Angeles for “shipping, handling, and taxes.” ...