The grandparent scam has reared its ugly head in Cochrane.

Long-time Cochrane resident Stu Bradley has been victimized by fraudsters he calls very professional and is spreading the word in hopes of preventing others from being preyed upon.

A series of events yesterday (Sept. 14) lead to Bradley giving $9,000 in cash to a person posing as a bonded courier in order to secure the supposed release of his granddaughter, whom he was told was being held on some serious drug charges.

Nine thousand dollars later, it turned out to be completely untrue.

"I'm putting it out to the media to help other people realize that this is a scam," says Bradley. "These guys are absolutely, totally professional, and I could not believe the steps they take to get you involved. I thought I was on top of a situation like that."

"I find out now that other people have ultimately been involved in the same scam, and if we could help in some way to make people aware of the fact that this type of thing takes place, it could help them avoid the same problem."

He's calling on others who have fallen prey to the same scam to report it to the police. By doing so, he hopes will aid in bringing these criminals to justice.

Bradley believes they used information from his wife's obituary to put the cards in play. Dixie Mae Bradley, his wife of 65 years, passed away on August 8, 2022.

It went like this. Bradley received a call about 12:40 p.m. on Sept. 14 from a person identifying himself as Constable Jeffrey from the Olds RCMP detachment, whom he said used a firm, police-like voice. He said Bradley's granddaughter had been in an accident and was in serious trouble after 10 lbs. of marijuana was discovered in the trunk of the vehicle.

Bradley was told she and her driver were being held, had already been arraigned by a judge, and $9,000 bail was required for his granddaughter's release.

He did speak with the woman posing as his daughter on the phone. Bradley says her voice didn't seem quite right, but she explained she had broken her nose in the accident.

He was instructed to go to his bank and withdraw $9,000. Because of the severity of the charges, they told him not to tell the bank or any family members about what he was doing.

He initially got a bank draft but when he called "Cst. Jeffery"  was told it must be in cash. Bradley returned to the bank and got the cash.

Bradley was then instructed to place the money in an envelope and write the words "Code Orange" on its cover. The courier would also use the words "Code Orange" to identify herself.

Bradley questioned the courier's appearance, but she knew the password and he handed over the money. He received another call right away from "Cst. Jeffrey" and the woman claiming to be his granddaughter. He was told she was being released and was being dropped off at home by a female RCMP officer.

He waited a bit, then called his granddaughter, only to find the entire scenario was fictitious.

A report has been filed with the Cochrane RCMP, and he intends to provide the same information to the Olds RCMP.

One of his grandchildren, Tieran Green has created a gofundme fundraiser in hopes of helping her grandfather recover the funds, but to also wants to raise awareness of the scam in hopes of preventing others from being preyed upon.

The gofundme page can be found here.