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Sean Camara

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Elderly being coerced into drug trafficking by online scammers, police warn

It's a heart-wrenching story that we see all too often here at the Seniors Discount Club.

People who have spent their entire lives working hard, saving and being frugal, only to have it all taken away in an instant by ruthless criminals who target the elderly.



Sadly, this is happening more and more these days, as scammers become increasingly sophisticated in their methods. But there's one particular scam that's been making headlines recently, and it involves criminals coercing seniors into becoming drug mules.

According to reports, this scamming trend has been on the rise since borders reopened and international travel resumed. In June, three US nationals – two of them elderly – were found to be carrying 15kg of methamphetamine and 1.5kg of cocaine in the lining of their luggage after arriving at Sydney International Airport. They claimed they had been scammed out of $US500,000 ($800,000 AUD) online and were told they would be given more money if they transported a bag into Australia.


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The AFP claims that some elderly foreign travellers were caught at the airport reportedly trying to smuggle drugs into Australia as a result of falling for online scams. Credit: AFP.



A month later, two German nationals aged in their 70s were also caught at Sydney Airport with 18kg of methamphetamine hidden in six suitcases.

They too claimed they had been scammed out of money online (in this instance, $10 million), and had been provided with the suitcases by someone from the UK who instructed them to fly to Zimbabwe before continuing to Australia. According to reports, both victims said they felt coerced into trafficking drugs after falling victim to online scams.

Just a few days ago, a Korean citizen was apprehended at Brisbane International Airport with 2.5 kilograms of cocaine in his baggage.



He allegedly said he was pressured into smuggling the drugs into the country by individuals who had cheated him out of his money and told him that he needed to transport a bag with them if he wanted to get his own money back.

Since October last year, a total of 18 alleged drug mules have been arrested by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) upon their arrival in the country.

The AFP noted that some of the participants had disclosed to the police that they had been 'coerced' into the role after being swindled by somebody they met online.



Australian Federal Police (AFP) Commander Kate Ferry stated that criminal syndicates exploited the vulnerable and manipulated people into committing illegal activities just to get their money back.

She said: 'Criminal syndicates, by their very nature, exploit vulnerable communities and will undertake whatever tactics necessary to import drugs into our country.'

'The victims of scams are already facing significant financial hardship along with any additional emotional trauma as a result of the online scam.'

Key Takeaways

  • Transnational criminals and members of organised crime gangs are targeting the elderly by coercing them into working as drug mules to recoup their debts, federal police claim.
  • The chilling new scamming trend follows several border force detections involving elderly passengers at Sydney International Airport after borders were reopened.
  • The Australian Federal Police (AFP) have arrested 18 alleged drug mules upon arriving in Australia since October last year – some of them told police they had been ‘coerced’ into the role after falling victim to online scams.
  • The AFP says the resumption of international travel has led to an increase in drug detections at Sydney International Airport.



Many of us know what it's like to get an unsolicited message online. You may get a sense that something isn’t quite right, but then you imagine what could happen if you didn’t reply.

We encourage keeping a safe distance from anybody who reaches out to you online, especially since some of these messages are cleverly crafted to gain your trust (perhaps by impersonating a loved one) that could persuade you to cooperate. We like to think we have a safe community here but it is always better to be on the safe side if something doesn’t add up.

In the end, you might end up as another scam victim or fall victim to an even more malicious scam.



Remember, if it seems too good to be true, it is. So, if you ever get a message asking you to send money to someone or to give them personal information, delete the message right away. Don't reply, and most importantly, don't give them your money.

Stay safe out there, members! If you have received any messages from scammers, please report them immediately to the Federal ScamWatch www.scamwatch.gov.au.

For more information on the most recent scamming schemes and to protect yourself from them, we also encourage you to visit the Scam Watch page of the SDC website.
 
Well, I'll bite ... can you interpret the meaning of the "art" illustration above? We all know that art is in the eye of the beholder, but I'm buggered if I can work that one out! Was it the starting point for Jackson Pollock's Blue Poles? Looks like a bit of kindergarten butcher paper effort to me.
 
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Well, I'll bite ... can you interpret the meaning of the "art" illustration above? We all know that art is in the eye of the beholder, but I'm buggered if I can work that one out! Was it the starting point for Jackson Pollock's Blue Poles? Looks like a bit of kindergarten butcher paper effort to me.
?
Are you referring to the image showing the scan of a suitcase with hidden drugs?
I don't see any art work in this message.
 
?
Are you referring to the image showing the scan of a suitcase with hidden drugs?
I don't see any art work in this message.
Some of these elderly people doing it a bit tuff are stupid for believing the email and falling for the scam but in saying that it is hard also sometimes for non 'computer Literate' people to understand sometimes what comes through is not all good on the screen. I would be interested to know what has happened to them. Are they locked up or were they able to prove it was a scam so to speak and have been allowed to go home.
 
Well, I'll bite ... can you interpret the meaning of the "art" illustration above? We all know that art is in the eye of the beholder, but I'm buggered if I can work that one out! Was it the starting point for Jackson Pollock's Blue Poles? Looks like a bit of kindergarten butcher paper effort to me.
Are you being serious? That‘s not artwork! It’s a scan of suitcase contents!
 
I almost got scammed a couple of weeks ago. Not to do with drug smuggling but worth taking note of. I had a call from Telstra telling me they were trying to fix my internet because it was showing public instead of private. He had me type in show my IP address and sure enough it said public! Then he wanted me to download a program so he could fix it. I said no way and he got stroppy I hung up and he key ringing. When I looked up the app he wanted me to download it would have given him access to my computer ! I reported it of course.
 
Some of these elderly people doing it a bit tuff are stupid for believing the email and falling for the scam but in saying that it is hard also sometimes for non 'computer Literate' people to understand sometimes what comes through is not all good on the screen. I would be interested to know what has happened to them. Are they locked up or were they able to prove it was a scam so to speak and have been allowed to go home.
ya and its going to get worse as the medibank scam is not.a good thing as they can get all our info they want and there is nort we can do about it
 
Well, I'll bite ... can you interpret the meaning of the "art" illustration above? We all know that art is in the eye of the beholder, but I'm buggered if I can work that one out! Was it the starting point for Jackson Pollock's Blue Poles? Looks like a bit of kindergarten butcher paper effort to me.
It's an Xray of a suitcase!:)
 
Well, I'll bite ... can you interpret the meaning of the "art" illustration above? We all know that art is in the eye of the beholder, but I'm buggered if I can work that one out! Was it the starting point for Jackson Pollock's Blue Poles? Looks like a bit of kindergarten butcher paper effort to me.
Get your eyes tested I suggest as the painting you refer to is nothing like the x-ray blue poles painting you are seeing 🙈🙉
 
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Some of these elderly people doing it a bit tuff are stupid for believing the email and falling for the scam but in saying that it is hard also sometimes for non 'computer Literate' people to understand sometimes what comes through is not all good on the screen. I would be interested to know what has happened to them. Are they locked up or were they able to prove it was a scam so to speak and have been allowed to go home.
 
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I would also like to know what happens to them, especially if it can be proven that they have been scammed.
Hopefully, there is a follow up article.
 
On the weekend my wife received a scam SMS telling her that the sender's phone # had changed. Not knowing the sender, this was deleted.

Whenever a scammer phones & tells us there is something wrong with our computer the reply is, "My son-in-law is a computer technician so I'll get him to look at it thanks. Which he is, but they don't know otherwise. We then hang up.
 
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Some of these elderly people doing it a bit tuff are stupid for believing the email and falling for the scam but in saying that it is hard also sometimes for non 'computer Literate' people to understand sometimes what comes through is not all good on the screen. I would be interested to know what has happened to them. Are they locked up or were they able to prove it was a scam so to speak and have been allowed to go home.
I’m sorry I’m struggling with “doing it a bit tuff”
One couple say scammed out of $ 10M?? Another $800,000?? All with the same story but it could’ve been a story they’re prepped with, I’m 62 and not even considering that I’m middle aged let alone a clueless frail old dear….my dad at 91 with nothing but a old age pension is a frail and vulnerable old senior
I don’t buy it
 

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