A distressed individual is now telling the story of how their 72-year-old mother lost roughly $300,000 to scams over the span of just 12 months.
Among the losses, the largest reportedly stemmed from a romance scam that led the woman to ship large amounts of cash through UPS to different P.O. boxes.
Here's what to know
In a post to Reddit's r/Scams community, the original poster explained that the most recent scam left their mother with nearly nothing left.
OP then described the alleged romance scam, where a man using the name "Kelvin" swindled the woman.
They wrote that, "Kelvin, our friendly Doctors Without Borders Christian Missionary who is going to be paid 1 million from the UN when he gets back to the states needed money sent to his family here and asked his soon-to-be-fiance, my 72 yo mother, to mail, in cash, by UPS across state lines."
OP then said their mother remained in contact with the scammer through Signal, Telegram, and WhatsApp while sending cash to P.O. boxes in several states. They said the money was split across five UPS packages, "50k in one box, 50k in another, 50k in a 3rd, 50k in the 4th, and don't worry, only 20k in the last one."
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The account described severe financial fallout, noting, "My mother's entire retirement and house is gone." The OP also added that their mother faces a large IRS bill after withdrawing money from her 401(k).
More background
Romance scams exploit trust, loneliness, and hope. Older adults are often targeted, especially when scammers spend weeks or months building a relationship before introducing urgent stories involving travel, religion, military service, or overseas work.
This alleged romance scam was unfortunately only one part of a pattern. The OP said their mother has now lost about $300,000 across several scams in a single year, suggesting that once a victim is identified as responsive, scammers may keep coming back with new schemes.
Family members are often left trying to sort through tax consequences, missing records, legal questions, and the possibility that their loved one could be pressured into even more losses.
The top comment on the thread summed up the urgency of the situation: "You need legal advice on how to obtain conservatorship. Talk to a real lawyer."
Where can I learn more?
The following cases follow a grim pattern. Older victims are pressured into fast decisions and drained of savings before their families realize what is happening. The setup changes — crypto ads, spoofed bank calls, fake online rescue pleas — but the manipulation looks a lot the same.
• An older woman lost £250,000 after a crypto ad let scammers take over her devices.
• A woman lost her savings when a verified bank number sent a fake FBI courier.
• In Ohio, a woman sent $500 to a Facebook rescue before her bank flagged charges.
Each story shows how one believable point of trust can turn into a financial disaster.
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