Assemblymember Ed Chau (D-Monterey Park), in collaboration with Congresswoman Judy Chu, hosted a community event on Saturday, June 6th, at the Arcadia Community Center to provide participants with a basic understanding of the types of scams out there and the resources to avoid becoming a victim of fraudulent schemes.

“Scam artists are continuously looking for ways to defraud unsuspecting consumers in the community, so it is important for us to provide tips to our constituents on how to protect themselves,” said Assemblymember Ed Chau.  “I am proud to have co-sponsored this event with Congresswoman Judy Chu and will continue working towards expanding protections against those who would unscrupulously defraud our hard working families.”

Congresswoman Chu made the following statement:

“From computer and network intrusions to imposter telephone calls, a single scam can destroy a business or ruin a family. In fact, older Americans lose an estimated $2.9 billion annually to financial exploitation, and it’s estimated that for each case that is reported, 43 others go unrecognized. But many of these scams can be prevented through education and community cooperation. That is why events like our Scam Prevention Workshop are so important. I am very appreciative to all the federal, state, and local agencies that participated to help constituents keep themselves and others safe from fraud.”

Attendees had the opportunity to participate in workshops on public safety by the Arcadia Police Department, senior scam prevention by the California Senior Medicare Patrol, immigration services fraud by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services and Los Angeles County Department of Consumer Affairs, and identity and credit card scams by the United States Secret Service.

In addition to the workshops, attendees also had an opportunity to obtain useful information from booths provided by the Office of Assemblymember Ed Chau, the Office of Congresswoman Judy Chu, California Highway Patrol, Los Angeles County Department of Consumer Affairs, Los Angeles County Office of the Assessor, the Internal Revenue Service, County 211, California AARP – Pasadena, California Senior Medicare Patrol, San Gabriel Valley Water Company, U.S. Secret Service, AARP API-Chinese Chapter,  United States Federal Trade Commission, United States Federal Communication Commission, Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District, and Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Los Angeles.