An elderly Saline County woman was duped for over $17,000 through a telephone scam.

According to Sheriff Roger Soldan,  a man identifying himself as Sergeant Bradshaw with the U.S. Embassy in Dominican Republic told the 81-year-old woman over the phone on Monday that her grandson had been arrested there for possession of marijuana.

He then convinced her that in order for her grandson to gain his freedom – she would need to send $17,720 to cover both court fees and transport out of the country.

The woman followed the scammers directions by wrapping the cash in magazines and overnighting the money by FedEx to an address in Brooklyn, New York.

She later became suspicious and called her grandson in Florida to discover he had not left the country.