Sheriff’s office warns of monsters targeting elderly with phone scam

By Frank Fencil | frank.fencil@springhillcourier.com

The next time your 98-year-old mother tells you a demigod named Porgris who lives in space has been regularly calling for chats, it may not be just another Alzheimer’s episode.

Officials say they have received several reports from concerned family members who say employees from the monster hotline 1-900-490-FREAK, promoted by an otherwordly being calling himself Freddy Freaker, are cold-calling elderly residents and engaging them in lengthy conversations at a steep charge.

“A lot of these folks are suffering from different flavors of dementia and they simply don’t know they’re being taken advantage of,” sheriff’s office spokesman Megan Waterson said. “Often a monster calling himself something like Grimblegore or Melgrid will call and strike up a conversation, engage the homeowner with talk of warts or of eating bugs and by the end of the call, which often lasts in excess of three hours, have a social security number along with several credit card numbers.”

The monsters often prey on the lonely, and over time they have been known to build relationships with the elderly, who in turn often go to great lengths to hide an expensive habit that runs at $5.99 a minute.

“The one who called me was spooky, but I am just so alone,” said one Timber Pines resident who asked to remain anonymous. “My son never calls or visits me. This is all I have”

Video of the alleged ring leader Freddy Freaker