WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Broken Arrow woman testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday about a rise in romance scams targeting senior citizens.
April Helm, who goes by April Hill, is the News Director for FOX23’s radio news partner 102.3 KRMG and hosts the ‘Scammer Stories Podcast.’
She calls it her passion project because of what happened to her own mother.
April’s mom lost every dollar she had and unfortunately has since passed away. Now, April has made it her mission to speak out about romance scams and try to get congress to do something to protect everyone.
“My mother deserved better — every victim does,” said April. “We urgently need congress to act to ensure no more families are shattered by this cruel and complex crime.”
During Tuesday’s United States Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, April shared with lawmakers how her mom lost $350,000 in a romance scam.
“One day while I was headed to a football game in my hometown, I received a text from her. It said ‘I gave all my money away; I have nothing. Come get me.’ I was in shock,” said April. “She had lost her car, everything. I told her she can move in with me but that was under one condition: she couldn’t talk to the scammer in my house.”
She said her mom couldn’t let go of the fantasy and decided to move in with April’s aunt. She eventually wanted April to come get her and start over in Dallas.
“One of their tactics is to keep victims awake all night, exhausted and disoriented. That morning, as my aunt and my mother were preparing to leave, my aunt found her collapsing on the floor. She never made it to Dallas,” April said. “I believe with all of my heart if it weren’t for the scam, I would have seen my mother that day.”
April and four other advocates explained to senators that scammers pose a threat to all Americans.
“This is a crime and it’s happening at a devastating scale. The FTC reports…adults lose between $7 billion and $62 billion a year. In the blink of an eye, someone can lose their entire retirement savings,” said AARP National Director and advocate against romance scams, Jilenne Gunther.
“We are responding aggressively but we cannot make arrests or prosecute the criminals, even when we identify them,” said Ustelecom President Joshua Bercu. “That’s where we need government support.”
The people who testified said the United States has the ability to deal with the issue, it’s just a matter of creating a task force treating these scams like a crime and protecting elders from these fraud romance scams.
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