-Don’t Get Caught in a SCAM, Sam! by Dr. Ross L. Riggs, Director SCI; Retired Chief of Police LPD and author of the Ministry Minute!
THERE ARE WAYS YOU CAN GET ON THE OFFENSE AND AVOID TROUBLE!
People who are seeking a way to get your personal information or force you into giving them money are watching for certain clues that they believe will make it easier for them to get what they want from YOU!
BECOME A HARD TARGET! Criminals are lazy! They want to take on the easy targets. 
While I was travelling in Israel, persons in my phone contacts started receiving messages supposedly from me that I was stranded at Heathrow Airport in London and that I needed cash wired right away to be able to travel home. For those friends who knew I was somewhere overseas but not sure where, this was a real issue for them. Others, who knew my exact location notified me of the scam being perpetrated on my friends and helped put a stop to it. Thankfully, no one sent any money. Of course, most of my friends haven’t any money and those who do would never send it to me to get me back from overseas! If you get such a message supposedly from a friend in need, TALK DIRECTLY to your friend BEFORE any money goes anywhere!
How many of us have received word that we have won a lottery overseas or some person has left us untold fortunes but it is in a foreign country? The people contacting us JUST NEED OUR BANK INFO to send us the cash! WOW! What a deal! Remember the old adage, “If it sounds too good to be true… It is.”
If ANYONE calls you and tells you they are LAW ENFORCEMENT and you are required to pay for an outstanding ticket or if you were enticed to buy prescription drugs by phone to get them cheaper and then the someone claiming to be the police CALL you…Well, let’s put it this way; I was a cop for a very long time and I NEVER CALLED anyone I was about to arrest! HANG UP on these people and call YOUR LOCAL POLICE. They will help you set it straight.
CALLERS who claim to be government or utility companies, MEDICAID or the IRS are NEVER who they say they are! HANG UP – Call your local police if these callers are trying to get you to give out information or pay them money! 
IF you get caught in a SCAM – Do not be embarrassed! It is a BIG CLUB! Tell the police and your relatives what has happened.
If you are caring for a senior relative and they tell you that they have been scammed, PLEASE, remember it could happen EVEN to YOU! Don’t berate or belittle them. They feel bad enough already! Take care of them with love and grace.
Doc Riggs' Ministry Minute 