Fighting Financial Abuse
Gov. Neil Abercrombie signs five bills as part of the Kupuna Care Package
The frustrations of financial abuse for the elderly received help from the Governor today.
Gov. Neil Abercrombie signed Senate Bill 102 to amend a section in the Hawai`i Revised Statutes relating to the reporting of elderly financial abuse. The most significant change is for financial institutions to report possible abuse to state human services as well as county police. The original statute required reports only to human services. Immediately after receiving a report, police must begin a criminal investigation.
"It's gonna fill a gap that's really needed," Honolulu Police Department Lieutenant John McCarthy said. "We're seeing an explosion in elder financial fraud cases. It's really sad because these people lose real dollars. There's no one to replace it. There's nowhere to replace it. We have to get out to these complaints immediately to try and track the money and save or recover what's there."
"WE'RE SEEING IT EVERYWHERE"
After a case gets reported to the county police department, they then contact the prosecutor's office to work on the report and take it to trial. Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Scott Spallina explained that these fraud incidents are not only originating in Hawai`i.
"Unfortunately we're seeing it everywhere," Spallina said. "It's not just a local crime. We have criminals coming from the mainland praying on our local victims here - our local kupuna - and taking the money out of state. It'd be one thing if they committed crimes here and the money stayed here but no, they're taking it out of state - not only to the mainland but also Nigeria - other countries where the law is not as strict as they are here."
FREEZING THE FAMILY
McCarthy said that although the elderly may be the victim, it still affects others.
"This crime not only injures the elderly person but the families that are involved," McCarthy said. "The families become victims. They have to come in and care for these people and they lose potentially what was theirs to inherit."
And the message is to report all incidents in a timely manner.
"Time is money," Spallina said. "The longer it takes for a crime to be reported, the more money the victim loses. For the banks to be able to call the police immediately, they're literally saving thousands of dollars of the victim's money."
WHY THE ELDERLY?
McCarthy insists that the message is for the general public but explains why the elderly are targeted more frequently.
"Our kupuna grew up trusting people," McCarthy said. "They grew up in the 1960s - the post World War II era - happy days. Times have changed."
"Elder abuse is the most under reported crime there is because our victims are too embarrased to report it," Spallina said. "No one's going to pass judgment on you. If you're a victim of a crime, please report it to stop that criminal from victimizing others."
DRAWING A COMPARISON
One of the most high-profile types of financial fraud was the infamous "Stevie Wonder Blunder" that ripped off $200,000 from the University of Hawai`i last summer. This, Spallina said, was a prime example of how this type of scam can hit anyone.
"That's another example of how smart people can get taken advantage of," Spallina said. "We're talking about UH officials being taken for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Just because you're a victim of a crime doesn't mean you're stupid - doesn't mean you deserve that. It just means that the criminals are smart. They're smooth. They don't dress like our stereotypical criminal."
HOW TO PREVENT IT?
Financial fraud cases can involve phone calls, email messages or face-to-face interactions - but Spallina has one message for Hawai`i residents to protect themselves from these incidents.
"If a deal sounds too good to be true, it's too good to be true," Spallina said. "People need to realize that they aren't that lucky. They're not lucky to win a secret lottery that they never entered. They're not lucky to have a prince from Nigeria calling them up to transfer all these monies. They're not lucky to get a construction job that usually costs thousands of dollars for only a hundred dollars."
To report possible elder financial abuse, contact Adult Protective Services at 808-832-5115.
This bill was one of five signed by the Governor today as part of their Kupuna Care package. Those bills were: HB529 (Relating to Care Homes), HB398 (Relating to Human Services), HB120 (Relating to Health) and SB106 (Relating to Aging).
Gov. Neil Abercrombie signed Senate Bill 102 to amend a section in the Hawai`i Revised Statutes relating to the reporting of elderly financial abuse. The most significant change is for financial institutions to report possible abuse to state human services as well as county police. The original statute required reports only to human services. Immediately after receiving a report, police must begin a criminal investigation.
"It's gonna fill a gap that's really needed," Honolulu Police Department Lieutenant John McCarthy said. "We're seeing an explosion in elder financial fraud cases. It's really sad because these people lose real dollars. There's no one to replace it. There's nowhere to replace it. We have to get out to these complaints immediately to try and track the money and save or recover what's there."
"WE'RE SEEING IT EVERYWHERE"
After a case gets reported to the county police department, they then contact the prosecutor's office to work on the report and take it to trial. Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Scott Spallina explained that these fraud incidents are not only originating in Hawai`i.
"Unfortunately we're seeing it everywhere," Spallina said. "It's not just a local crime. We have criminals coming from the mainland praying on our local victims here - our local kupuna - and taking the money out of state. It'd be one thing if they committed crimes here and the money stayed here but no, they're taking it out of state - not only to the mainland but also Nigeria - other countries where the law is not as strict as they are here."
FREEZING THE FAMILY
McCarthy said that although the elderly may be the victim, it still affects others.
"This crime not only injures the elderly person but the families that are involved," McCarthy said. "The families become victims. They have to come in and care for these people and they lose potentially what was theirs to inherit."
And the message is to report all incidents in a timely manner.
"Time is money," Spallina said. "The longer it takes for a crime to be reported, the more money the victim loses. For the banks to be able to call the police immediately, they're literally saving thousands of dollars of the victim's money."
WHY THE ELDERLY?
McCarthy insists that the message is for the general public but explains why the elderly are targeted more frequently.
"Our kupuna grew up trusting people," McCarthy said. "They grew up in the 1960s - the post World War II era - happy days. Times have changed."
"Elder abuse is the most under reported crime there is because our victims are too embarrased to report it," Spallina said. "No one's going to pass judgment on you. If you're a victim of a crime, please report it to stop that criminal from victimizing others."
DRAWING A COMPARISON
One of the most high-profile types of financial fraud was the infamous "Stevie Wonder Blunder" that ripped off $200,000 from the University of Hawai`i last summer. This, Spallina said, was a prime example of how this type of scam can hit anyone.
"That's another example of how smart people can get taken advantage of," Spallina said. "We're talking about UH officials being taken for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Just because you're a victim of a crime doesn't mean you're stupid - doesn't mean you deserve that. It just means that the criminals are smart. They're smooth. They don't dress like our stereotypical criminal."
HOW TO PREVENT IT?
Financial fraud cases can involve phone calls, email messages or face-to-face interactions - but Spallina has one message for Hawai`i residents to protect themselves from these incidents.
"If a deal sounds too good to be true, it's too good to be true," Spallina said. "People need to realize that they aren't that lucky. They're not lucky to win a secret lottery that they never entered. They're not lucky to have a prince from Nigeria calling them up to transfer all these monies. They're not lucky to get a construction job that usually costs thousands of dollars for only a hundred dollars."
To report possible elder financial abuse, contact Adult Protective Services at 808-832-5115.
This bill was one of five signed by the Governor today as part of their Kupuna Care package. Those bills were: HB529 (Relating to Care Homes), HB398 (Relating to Human Services), HB120 (Relating to Health) and SB106 (Relating to Aging).
Lt. John McCarthy (next to Governor) of the Honolulu Police Department is part of the Criminal Investigation Division.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for commenting.
Your comment will be held for approval by the blog owner.