 National Association of Counties * Washington, D.C. Vol. 31, No. 9 * May 10, 1999 Previous story | Table of Contents | Next story Ohio County honored for educating By Kevin Wilcox
An elderly woman gets a call from a bank inspector. He tells her that a teller in the bank has been stealing from her account. He tells the woman the bank needs her help to catch the teller in the act. Can she come to the bank and make a large withdrawal from the account? he asks. The woman meets the inspector outside the bank. She goes in, withdraws a large sum from her account, and then gives it to the inspector outside. She gives him a deposit slip so that he can put it back into the account once the teller is arrested. It’s a scam called The Bank Examiner, and it’s just one of the ways con men bilk senior citizens out of more than $40 billion a year, according to FBI estimates. Phony bank examiners are having a tougher time these days in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. The county’s Safety and Crime Awareness Training (SCAT) program is paying dividends and attracting national attention. SCAT received the 1999 Public Service Excellence Award from the Public Employees Roundtable on May 3. "We’re delighted that the project is being recognized," said Rayford Odom, coordinator of the county’s Office on Aging in the Department of Senior and Adult Services (DSAS). Odom played a key role in starting the program two years ago.
"We noticed from national surveys, too, that financial crimes are the biggest problems for seniors because they are more vulnerable to them," Odom said. "Seniors are not familiar with con artists and the con artists play on seniors’ loneliness." SCAT is a collaborative effort. County departments, community police officers, bank officials and others conduct crime and safety awareness seminars throughout the county, primarily in senior centers or community centers. The county averages about two workshops a month. They’re well attended, Odom said. They’ve had as many as 150 in a workshop. In the past few years, thousands have attended.
For instance, in some areas, avoiding drug dealers and gangs is a primary concern of seniors. Workshops in those areas focus on ways to avoid being a victim of crime. Other workshops have focused on ways to identify seniors who are the victims of abuse and neglect. "We want to reduce victimization of the elderly," Odom said. "Many people are afraid to go outside of their homes because they fear crime. We have a triad program. Law enforcement, seniors and service providers have all come together to share their concerns." The county is working with the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) on a July training program for local police to help them become more familiar with the problems of the elderly.
"This kind of program requires coordination," Odom said. We’d like to have a staff that can coordinate this on a full-time basis. Someone has to make all these connections that make this work." "I think this is definitely something that counties should do," Odom added. "We listened to the seniors, and they said this was a problem we needed to focus on. Letting seniors know how to protect themselves is key." |
