Shocking call in Jena: 94-year-old throws 71,000 euros out the window!

Shocking call in Jena: 94-year-old throws 71,000 euros out the window!

A shocking incident occurred in Jena on July 17, 2025, when a 94-year-old man fell victim to a perfidious telephone scam. Unknown perpetrators posed as a lawyer and pretended that the senior's daughter had caused a fatal traffic accident. The caller demanded an immediate payment of money to avoid the alleged prison sentence. Full of fear and believing he had to help his daughter, the man threw a bag containing 71,000 euros in cash out the window. An unknown accomplice took the bag and disappeared. The fraud was only discovered when the man's daughter found out that nothing had happened to her and alerted the police, who have now started an investigation and are asking for information from witnesses who made suspicious observations on Wednesday. Information can be reported by calling 03641/810, as jenaer-nachrichten.de reports.

Unfortunately, such scams are not uncommon and often target older people who often have too little experience in dealing with such tricks. According to mobil-halten.de, the so-called grandchild trick is one of the most widespread scams in which fraudsters pose as relatives in order to get money. Whether through fake police officers who demand valuables to be “secured” or through glossed-over competitions – the range of fraud attempts against senior citizens is wide and requires increased sensitivity.

An overview of common scams

• Enkeltrick: Betrüger geben sich am Telefon als Enkel aus und bitten um Geld für dringende Angelegenheiten.
• Bestellbetrug: Senioren bestellen und zahlen für nicht gelieferte Waren.
• Abo-Falle: Kostenlose Angebote entpuppen sich oft als kostenpflichtige Abonnements.
• Datenklau: Kriminelle erlangen unrechtmäßig Zugang zu persönlichen Daten.
• Taschendiebstahl: Ablenkung durch freundliche Personen führt zum Diebstahl von Geldbörsen.

To protect yourself from these fraudulent schemes, pflegehilfe-senioren.de recommends always being skeptical, especially when calling from unknown numbers. In the event of suspicious situations, you should inform relatives immediately and not reveal any personal information. It is important to keep a clear head when dealing with seemingly urgent requests and not to allow yourself to be put under pressure.

Education is particularly needed in times of increasing digital media use. Society is called upon to raise awareness among seniors and support them in their independence. Only through education and a good network of family, friends and neighbors can older people be protected from falling into the trap of fraudsters. That's why it's even more important to make such incidents public and provide information about how you can protect yourself effectively.