Bologna, 4 June 2024 – Together to fight crime. There Bologna police and the chain of Despar supermarkets they started one collaboration to eradicate a problem of common interest such as that of scams for the elderly.
As the police commissioner of Bologna recalls Antonio Sbordonethey were almost 500 registered cases from the beginning of 2024for an average of approximately three a day. The commissioner spoke on the occasion of the awareness initiative ‘Together against scams’organized Tuesday 4 June near the Despar store via Di Vittorio.
Despar and the Bologna police collaborate to combat the phenomenon of scams targeting the elderly
‘Together against scams’
The event turned out to be an opportunity for comparison on a delicate topic like that of scams for the elderlyincreasingly on the agenda in this too 2024. Various topics are covered in the course of the initiativeby the way they can potentially act the scammers to the sense of shame which can prevent victims from reporting.
A moment of meeting in which they were delivered to those present information leaflets and where there were agents with the task of getting the message to as many people as possibleamong which they may be included potential victims.
“We must do more”
“This is a criminal phenomenon which we must pay the utmost attention to – declares the commissioner Antonio Sbordone –, I reiterated this at our celebration of police, but unfortunately we can’t stop it. Since the beginning of the year we have recorded approx 500 scams towards the elderly”. A threat to be defeated therefore, by collaborating and putting in all the effort possible.
“For this reason – continues Sbordone – we must do more and we can only do it Together to others, to other institutions and to commercial social realities like this. We have the need to intercept the elderly and to explain it. The types of scam then they are very numerous: the fake policeman, the fake policeman, but also the fake plumber, the fake social worker, etc.”.
One of mode most used by scammers is that of fake stories told to make them pity victims so as to deceive them. “They are more or less always the same – concludes the commissioner –, like a son who had an accident and he needs money, or they arrested him. And they often work. Unfortunately, many fall for it and unfortunately take it out money hey jewels. People come away devastated from experiences like these. The world collapses, they think they are strong because of their experience, because of what they know about life. Instead they are confronted with their own fragility”.
“The goal is to inform our customers”
The choice to fight this battle starting from a place like supermarket it is not at all random. “It is a place to go shoppingbut also for meetings and information – explains the regional director of Despar for Emilia Romagna, Alessandro Urban – the objective of this initiative is precisely to inform i our customerspeople, to ensure that they are there fewer and fewer victims of these scams. And the first piece and will expand to other supermarkets in Bologna and Emilia-Romagna”.
The prevention campaign, created by Aspiag Service with the support of Bologna police stationgoes on Tuesday 11 June at the Eurospar store in via delle Armi.
