22 | OCTOBER 10 • 2024 

Helping Local Seniors 
Avoid Financial Fraud

Gesher Human Services is joining forces 
with Huntington Bank on Tuesday, Oct. 
15, to provide Metro Detroit seniors with 
tools to avoid financial scammers. 
 Huntington Safe Banking for Seniors 
Workshop will be held at Gesher Human 
Services in Southfield from 10 a.m. to 1 
p.m. and free refreshments, a free lunch 
and giveaways such as gift cards will be 
provided as well. 
According to the FBI, reports to its 
Internet Crime Complaints Center rose 
by 14% in 2023 from victims of elder 
fraud; associated losses increased by 
11%. Scams targeting individuals aged 
60 and older caused over $3.4 billion in 
losses in 2023 with the average victim 
losing $33,915 due to these crimes, said 
the report. 
Gesher’s Financial Education Manager 
Laltsha Cunningham said it’s vital that 
seniors don’t release information to 
callers. For example, if someone got a 
request for a birth date, that would be 
a red flag because a bank or credit card 
company would already know that infor-
mation.
“
Also, it is very important to verify the 
source of a call. If someone calls and says 
they are from a bank, credit card com-
pany, court, landlord, utility company or 
any institution, and asks for payment, put 
the phone down, find the correct phone 
number for that organization and then 
speak to a customer representative. 
“The same goes for if someone says 
a family member needs money to be 
wired to them. Contact your family 
member directly,
” added Cunningham. 
“My biggest tip is that if someone calls 
and you don’t recognize the number, 
and it seems a bit odd that you would 
be getting the call, immediately put the 
phone down.
”
Topics of the Huntington Safe Banking 
for Seniors Workshop will include 
avoiding financial exploitation, guarding 
against identity theft, planning for 
unexpected life events, preparing for 
financial disasters, helpful resources for 
managing money and reporting financial 
exploitation, understanding common 
scams and importance of smart money 
decisions.
Register for the free workshop at 
geshermi.org/events or by calling (248) 
233-4422. 

OUR COMMUNITY

H

undreds of antisemitic flyers 
were distributed onto prop-
erties in West Bloomfield, 
Farmington Hills and other com-
munities across Metro Detroit this 
past weekend — in close proximity 
to Rosh Hashanah and the one-year 
anniversary of the Oct. 7 terrorist 
attacks on Israel. 
Some West Bloomfield residents 
woke up on Saturday, Oct. 5, with 
plastic bags full of flyers containing 
extreme anti-Jewish rheto-
ric on their driveways. The 
flyers included a wide range 
of hateful tropes against the 
“satanic” Jewish religion, 
Israel, Jewish politicians, 
circumcision and the Anti-
Defamation League, for 
instance, in the most vile and 
crude fashion. Identical inci-
dents have been reported in 
the past in many other areas includ-
ing Atlanta, Denver, Miami and San 
Francisco.
The West Bloomfield Police 
Department sent out a press release 
regarding the first reported incident 
in the Lagoons Forest neighborhood, 
near Pontiac Trail and Halstead, after 
officers were sent to investigate. 
“The initial investigation revealed 
that over 100 households in the neigh-
borhood received similar material on 
their driveways overnight,” the release 
said. “No suspects have been identi-
fied at this time. The West Bloomfield 
Police Department strongly con-
demns hate of any kind and is actively 
investigating this situation as a case of 
ethnic intimidation.”
An almost identical incident hap-
pened in Farmington Hills. 
On Oct. 5, the Farmington Hills 
Police Department responded to 
the area of 14 Mile and Farmington 
regarding several residents who found 
plastic bags containing virulent antise-
mitic material strewn on their front 
lawns. The neighbors opened the bags 

to find they contained an antisemitic 
flyer that had been thrown onto their 
front lawns and driveways overnight.
“The timing of this detestable activ-
ity exacerbates the chilling effect on 
our community,” said Farmington 
Hills Police Chief Jeff King. “This type 
of hateful activity will not be tolerated 
in Farmington Hills and our agency 
will use all available resources to pre-
vent, investigate, and prosecute those 
responsible for this incident.”
Farmington Hills Police 
Department investigators 
and officers eventually recov-
ered more than 100 bags 
containing the antisemitic 
materials. The bags were 
found to be weighed down 
with “various non-hazardous 
materials for ease in hurling 
onto the residential lawns 
and driveways.” 
Chief King added that this is a very 
active investigation, with investigators 
coordinating with state and federal 
law enforcement partners, the Anti-
Defamation League (ADL) and other 
jurisdictions who experienced match-
ing incidents. 

ADL RESPONDS
Michigan ADL Regional Director 
Carolyn Normandin said these fly-
ers come from a virulent antisemitic 
group — a group very well-known to 
them that operates nationwide — and 
specifically in Michigan for about 
three years. 
“They are propagandists,” 
Normandin says. “This whole thing 
is designed to sow discord, to make 
people hate Jews.” 
If people find one of these bags, 
Normandin says they should report 
it to local law enforcement — as they 
would consider it evidence. In addi-
tion, people who find these flyers 
should report it to the ADL. 
Along with West Bloomfield and 
Farmington Hills, Normandin says 

there have been some confirmed 
incidents of similar flyers in Holly 
and Commerce. There may have been 
incidents in other communities as 
well, but no confirmation. 
Normandin has been in contact 
with both police chiefs, the County 
Executive’s Office and other law 
enforcement.
One of the most important things 
Jewish community members can do 
after these incidents, Normandin says, 
is to not post things online they aren’t 
sure are true. Also, Normandin urges 
people to not post the flyers online to 
prevent the name and message of the 
antisemitic group from spreading. 
Normandin says the ADL has seen 
all kinds of groups taking advantage 
of the Jewish holidays and of the 
proximity to the anniversary of Oct. 7 
to sow division and spew hate, and it’s 
something they sadly expected. 
“It’s upsetting. It’s terrible to find 
this on your lawn or driveway, 
because it makes you feel vulner-
able,” Normandin says. “The most 
important thing to know is that every 
law officer I’ve spoken to is with the 
Jewish community on this and against 
people who are trying to put fear and 
concern into the minds of the Jewish 
community.” 
Michigan political figures have spo-
ken up about the incidents on social 
media. 
“This is disgusting. Antisemitism 
is becoming more public and brazen,” 
Michigan’s only Jewish state senator, 
Jeremy Moss, posted. “The only way 
to snuff it out is for all decent people 
to speak up against this hatred.” 
“Jewish Americans feel unsafe 
because of these hateful, targeted inci-
dents of harassment,” Congresswoman 
Haley Stevens posted. “I’m disgusted 
that antisemitic materials were thrown 
onto residents’ property and encour-
age anyone with information to come 
forward so these perpetrators can be 
held accountable.” 

West Bloomfield, Farmington Hills police investigate 
antisemitic flyers left on lawns and driveways.

Vile Hatred

DANNY SCHWARTZ SENIOR STAFF REPORTER

Carolyn Normandin

