OLD SAYBROOK, Conn. -- A phone scam that has been targeting grandparents has left several Connecticut residents out thousands of dollars.

Retired physical education teacher June Crawford said she recently took a call from someone claiming to be her grandson Dustin. The caller said he was in trouble on a fishing trip in Canada.

"I said, 'You have a cold?' And he said, 'Yes I do,' because it didn’t' sound like him," she said.

She said there was urgency in the caller's voice and that he said Canadian authorities were holding him for trespassing and he needed bail money.

She said the man said he needed $3,000.

"The word Gram just pulled at my heartstrings," she said.

Before being duped, Crawford said she called her daughter and learned that her grandson was not in Canada.

Police said Crawford isn't the only senior who has been targeted. They said a victim in Old Saybrook told Eyewitness News that she lost more than $3,000 in the scam.

Police said the victims are asked to wire money in the scam and that the personal information of the targets can be purchased on the Internet.

Police urged anyone who may have received a similar call or been a victim of a scam to contact their local police department.