My Experience with Scams

By Karen Charland

I never, ever thought it could happen to me. I’m fairly tech-savvy and very aware of the scams going on in my area (and elsewhere).

One afternoon, I received a phone call from a lawyer who told me my son had been arrested for a DUI and was in police custody. Bail was $5000 and had to be paid in cash before the end of the day. This all unfolded around lunchtime.

Not long after, my “son” called me — distraught and crying. To this day, I swear it was my son’s voice, even though I know it wasn’t. By then, my emotions had taken over. I called my husband, who wasn’t home, and he told me to do whatever it took to get our son out of police custody.

I even checked online and saw that the lawyer’s name was real — he was registered in Trois-Rivières. That convinced me it was legitimate.

The “lawyer” called back and gave me instructions to withdraw the cash. After I returned home, he told me someone would come pick it up. He kept me on the phone to “verify” that I was giving the money to the right person. I did as instructed.

Two minutes later, my husband called back to say the whole situation sounded suspicious. At that moment, I realized it myself: I had been scammed.

I immediately called the police, but it was too late. With no cameras in the area, there was no way to identify the suspect. At the police’s request, I phoned the so-called lawyer back while they recorded the call, but he quickly caught on. I also contacted my bank, but because I had taken out cash, there was nothing they could do. Looking back, I wish the bank had questioned such an unusual withdrawal.

In hindsight, there were multiple red flags, but I missed them all because fear and emotions had clouded my judgment. Even though this happened almost a year ago, I still feel upset and guilty.

My children were upset as well. My son told me he would never call me in such a situation — he would call his partner first. He reminded me that if my granddaughter ever called me for help, I should tell her to call her father. My daughter gave me the same advice.

This was a painful lesson, but it taught me something important: scams can happen to anyone. No matter how aware or tech-savvy we think we are, scammers know how to prey on our emotions. If something feels urgent or suspicious, stop, breathe, and double-check. Taking even a moment to verify can make all the difference.