SCAMMERS STOLE MORE THAN $3.4 BILLION FROM OLDER AMERICANS LAST YEAR, AN FBI REPORT SAYS

Scammers stole more than $3.4 billion from older Americans last year, according to an FBI report released this week that shows a rise in losses through increasingly sophisticated criminal tactics to trick the vulnerable into giving up their life savings.

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Losses from scams reported by Americans over the age of 60 last year were up 11% over the year before, according to the FBI's report.

Investigators are warning of a rise in brazen schemes to drain bank accounts that involve sending couriers in person to collect cash or gold from victims.

“It can be a devastating impact to older Americans who lack the ability to go out and make money,” said Deputy Assistant Director James Barnacle of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “People lose all their money. Some people become destitute.”