© 2024 All Rights reserved WUSF
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Hillsborough woman loses over $700,000 in 'grandparent scam'

pile of money
flickr

Detectives are looking to see whether Uber can give them clues about who scammed a woman into thinking she was paying money to help her granddaughter.

Investigators are asking Uber for records as they investigate the theft of more than $700,000 from an 82-year-old Tampa-area woman who apparently fell for a "grandparent scam."

Over the summer, the scammers convinced the woman that her granddaughter was in legal trouble.

Court records show the woman made 13 bank withdrawals and handed the cash to couriers.

Hillsborough County Sheriff's investigators asked Uber about rideshare pickups at the woman's home between April and August. They've asked for the name of the Uber account holder, and the history of pickups and drop-offs.

The woman has filed a civil lawsuit against the bank.

[Copyright 2024 WUSF Public Media - WUSF 89.7]
WUSF 89.7 depends on donors for the funding it takes to provide you the most trusted source of news and information here in town, across our state, and around the world. Support WUSF now by giving monthly, or make a one-time donation online.