Bingo is a familiar pastime at senior centers, but federal prosecutors in Maryland recently gave the game a new purpose… teaching older adults how to recognize fraud.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland hosted an elder-fraud bingo event at the Laurel-Beltsville Senior Activity Center as part of Operation Silver Sentinel, a statewide enforcement and outreach initiative held October 19-23.
Instead of traditional bingo cards, seniors received cards featuring fraud-prevention and reporting resources along with common schemes to watch for, including romance scams and government impersonation scams. Assistant U.S. Attorneys used the game to discuss warning signs and ways seniors can protect themselves…