With the holiday season in full swing, Delta police are reminding people to check in with family, friends and neighbours, especially those who are more vulnerable.
In the past two weeks, the department has responded to two calls from concerned relatives asking to have officers provide assistance to a loved one.
In one instance, a woman called police after realizing her elderly mother had been the target of a phone scam and had lost a significant amount of money.
In the scam, a caller claiming to be a grandchild says they’re in some kind of trouble and need money immediately. They tell the elderly person they don’t want other family members to find out what has happened.
In this case, the caller claimed to be a lawyer needing money after a grandson had been in a car accident in a foreign country.
In another recent case, an out of town family member called police to check on a relative who had not been heard from in several days.
Officers went to the apartment but there was no answer at the door and there did not appear to be anyone at home.
The officers were about to leave when they heard faint noises coming from within the apartment. Unable to get a key, police had to break down the door and discovered the resident, who lives alone, had fallen four days earlier and was unable to get up or call for help.
The elderly person was taken to hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.
“In both these cases, the victims were helped by Delta police officers after a relative reported behaviour that was out of the ordinary,” said department spokesperson A/Sgt. Sarah Swallow.
“Without intervention, both incidents had the potential to have serious ramifications for the victims.”
Police are encouraging residents to check in on family members, friends and neighbours, especially those who are more vulnerable, this holiday season.
“If you suspect that anything is amiss, Delta police asks you to trust your intuition and physically check on those people, or to call on us to do so,” Swallow said.
“We wish you all a safe and Merry Christmas.”
