#elder-financial-abuse

#elder-financial-abuse

The fraud started in August 2023 as fear dressed up as urgency. Pop-up warnings began flashing across 86-year-old Nina Mortellito's computer screen, claiming her bank accounts had been hacked. What followed was a months-long tale of manipulation that ultimately drained her of $700,000 - her entire life savings. According to a lawsuit filed against Merrill Lynch in Manhattan Supreme Court, the Upper East Side resident who suffers from age-related memory loss was persuaded to make a series of withdrawals over nine months, framed as an act of "safekeeping."

When the mortgage request was submitted, the technology flagged the issue and forced the lender to seek confirmation from the legal owner. EquityProtect then contacted the daughter, halting the scam process. I was shocked when I heard from EquityProtect that my father was attempting to take out a mortgage on his home, as he has no need, the victim's daughter said.

Hardy noticed elderly women entering the gas station with bags of cash on three separate occasions, looking anxious and usually on the phone or texting someone. Each time, they used the Bitcoin ATM, or BTM, to convert their dead presidents into crypto. Suspecting something fishy was afoot, Hardy gently prodded the old ladies. "Do you know where you're sending the money to?" Hardy would ask, per . "You don't have to be on the phone to send money, as long as you have the other person's information."

"All of a sudden, nothing was working," Matteson said. "This whole thing is so serious - it's as serious as a heart attack."