Toronto woman, 85, handed over $600K in lottery scam; police recover about $400K
TORONTO — Police say an 85-year-old Toronto woman lost about $600,000 in a so-called “lottery sweepstake scam,” with some of the money coming from the sale of her $2.6-million dollar home.
The woman — who has diminished mental capacity — was told she had won a substantial amount of money and was only required to pay the taxes and other “recovery costs,” Toronto police said Wednesday.
Det. Alan Spratt said police first became aware that the woman was sending money to scammers in 2014 and believed that she had stopped. But they received an anonymous tip last month that she was still sending money.
“It looks like she sold the home to get money to send,” Spratt said, noting that they believe she’d sent some money before and some after the sale of the home.