Beaufort woman tried to protect her grandson in prison, lost almost $19K

A 76-year-old Beaufort grandmother was intimidated into handing over almost $19,000 in return for her incarcerated grandson’s safety.

The woman’s daughter reported the extortion to the Beaufort Police Department on Saturday, according to a police report. No arrests have been made, and the case is still under investigation.

Anonymous phone calls made to the grandmother started in March, police spokeswoman Sgt. Hope Able said on Tuesday. Numerous calls came from different people with separate phone numbers, Able said. The callers would threaten to harm the woman’s grandson, who is a state inmate, unless she handed over the money, she told her daughter.

The grandmother used MoneyGram, Green Dot cards or Western Union to provide the funds, Able said. In total, the woman surrendered $18,968 to the extortionists.

The family said the man had not been harmed, Able said.

This story was originally published June 20, 2017 at 4:56 PM with the headline "Beaufort woman tried to protect her grandson in prison, lost almost $19K."