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www.theactiveage.com January 2026 Kansas’ Largest Newspaper Printed at Valley Center, KS
Vol 47 No. 2
Senior fraud losses soar Billions lost to investment, tech and other scams
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By Joe Stumpe Two Sedgwick County residents in their 60s learned recently that online dating can be expensive — when the other party is a scammer. After meeting the victims separately through a legitimate online dating platform, this fraudster began texting them and eventually persuaded them to send money in the form of cashier’s checks to various banks and addresses across the United States. The payments were then funneled to Ghana. One victim sent a cashier’s check for $15,000 to an address in Colorado. Another sent $57,000 in two cashier’s checks. “The man literally lost his farm, worth about $750,000, as a result of this scam,” District Attorney Marc Bennett said. Investigators in Bennett’s office tracked down several more victims of the same scammer, but they were unwilling to cooperate.
So-called romance scams are just one of many ways in which seniors are being defrauded of money as part of an escalating problem. According to a new report from the Federal Trade Commission called “Protecting Older Consumers 2024-25”: • Adults 60 and over reported losses of about $2.4 billion in 2024, compared to $600 million in 2020. • Older victims lost more, on average, than younger victims. This was especially true of people 80 and over, whose median reported loss exceeded $1,600. • Investment scams cost older adults far more than any other type of fraud, with victims often targeted through social media. Older victims were also more likely to lose money on scams involving tech support, prizes, sweepstakes, lotteries, romance and government impersonation. Losses over $100,000 “This increase (in fraud losses) was largely driven by reports of losses over $100,000, often to investment scams, romance scams, or impersonations,” the report’s introduction reads. “As many frauds go unreported, the overall cost of fraud to older adults is estimated to be between $10.1 billion and $81.5 billion, depending on methodology.” See Fraud, page 8
Sue and Tom Hanson walk Tom's guide dog, Hank.
Blind bridge player plays the cards he was dealt
By Joe Stumpe ANDOVER — Neighbors were skeptical when Tom Hanson said he’d like to join their bridge group. “In the beginning, they thought it would be too difficult, too much to remember, and they just didn’t see how somebody without sight could do that,” said Hanson, who’s been blind since he was 6. That was all the motivation he needed. “Once somebody says you can’t
do something, it gives me extra motivation,” Hanson said. “And secondly, I have a pretty good memory, and I’m a decent card player.” Hanson soon became part of a regular bridge game in Harbor Cove, a community near Florida’s west coast where he and his wife, Sue, were living. Six months after their move to Kansas, he’s now part of the twiceSee Hanson, page 6
Where to get your kicks in '26
The Active Age This year will be celebrated across the United States as the nation’s 250th birthday, also known as a semiquincentennial. Other parties will mark the 100th birthday of Route 66, often called the nation’s Mother Road. And there looks to be plenty happening Wichita as well. A climbable rocket ship is part of One of the most exciting Exploration Place's playground developments for anybody with a opening in 2026. youngster to entertain has been taking
Questions about services?
Central Plains Area Agency on Aging/Sedgwick County Department on Aging: 316-660-7298 or 1-800-367-7298
shape along the Arkansas River for over a year and is scheduled to open this spring. It’s Exploration Place’s 6-acre, $29-million playground that features 10 themed areas, including the Texture Aviation Flight Adventure playground, Junior League of Wichita Water Play Cascades, Foggy Flint Hills, Sunflower Meadow (for the smallest tykes) and Prairie Play See Kicks, page 21
Butler County: (316) 775-0500 or 1-800-279-3655 Harvey County: (316) 284-6880 or 1-800-279-3655