Latinos warned of Lotto scam with comic strip.

Baldo, the first nationally-syndicated comic strip featuring a Latino family living in the United States, has teamed up with the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) to warn readers about a growing scam that targets Latinos, especially the elderly.

The so-called “Latin Lotto Scam” has been reported throughout the United States in communities with large Hispanic populations. Con artists typically approach elderly individuals with what appears to be a winning lottery ticket. The con artists claim they can’t collect their prize because of immigration issues and ask the victim to claim it for them. As a sign of “good faith,” the victim is asked for a security deposit. Of course, once the money has been taken from the victim, the con artists disappear – leaving behind a worthless lottery ticket.

The Texas Lottery Commission says that victims in Texas have been swindled out of more than $4 million in the Latin Lotto Scam in the last five or six years, reports the Dallas Morning News.

Baldo, in an 11-day storyline running March 13 to March 24, illustrates the problem. Baldo’s great aunt, Tía Carmen, is approached by con artists. “The key to preventing this is awareness,” says Baldo co-creator Hector Cantú. “It’s upsetting when you read news stories about tías and abuelitas losing their money because all they want to do is help someone out. It’s a very insidious scam.” Cantú and co-creator Carlos Castellanos hope the comic, which is published in both English and Spanish, can reach people with the message of “cuídate” (“watch out”).