YCSO and Avenir Financial Teach Yuma Seniors to Recognize Scam Calls

A free community seminar at the Yuma Main Library on Tuesday morning, Feb. 3, 2026, brought the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office and Avenir Financial together to teach residents—especially older adults—how to recognize phone and financial scams and avoid financial exploitation. The session aimed to translate common scam tactics into practical steps people can use when a suspicious call or request arrives.

YCSO investigator Bryan Evans III emphasized outreach as a priority for law enforcement and community partners. "What we're trying to do is reach out to as many residents as we can. We don't think they understand the extent, and I don't think they identify them the way they should," Evans explained. Organizers directed anyone who believes they encountered a scam call to the National Fraud Hotline at 1 (833) 372-8311.

Financial exploitation of older adults is both a criminal problem and a public health concern. Losing savings to a scam can destabilize housing, nutrition, and access to medical care. Outreach in community hubs like libraries can reduce isolation, improve reporting, and connect older residents with financial counseling and social services before small losses cascade into health crises.

Avenir Financial partnered with the sheriff’s office to present the free public session; materials and demonstrations focused on phone-based tactics and indicators of fraud. Library-based events aim to meet residents where they already gather, helping neighbors spot red flags and share information across family networks. The seminar also underscored the importance of reporting suspicious calls promptly so investigators can track emerging patterns that often target seniors, people with limited English, and those living on fixed incomes.

The Yuma seminar is part of a broader regional push to confront scams. Separately, the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office is offering its own free frauds and scams presentations at the Congress Public Library, featuring YCSO Fraud Investigator Ron Norfleet. Yavapai materials note that $10 million has been lost to scams in that county in less than two years and that the presentations there are supported by the Arizona State Library, Archives & Public Records with federal funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Those events are distinct from the Yuma program but illustrate how counties are responding to similar pressures.

For Yuma County residents, the immediate takeaway is to be cautious with unsolicited calls and to use the National Fraud Hotline when in doubt. Longer term, partnerships between law enforcement, financial institutions, libraries, and public health agencies can reduce inequities by prioritizing outreach to older adults and other groups most at risk. Expect more community sessions as agencies work to make prevention and reporting accessible to everyone.