Marianna- Imagine getting a call that you'd won seven million dollars, only to find out soon after you'd been duped. That's what recently happened to one Marianna resident.

"She kind of thought maybe she might be a winner but then that amount of money she was a little concerned," said Marianna Police Department Investigator Cheree Edwards.

Edwards said it appeared the scam artist was working off last week's craze over the Mega Millions jackpot.

"I think people are just trying to cash in on that," said Edwards.

In this case, officers said the elderly woman got a call last Friday from a 'David Brooks' representing 'Mega Money.' He gave her the seemingly great news but then said first she'd have to forward him three hundred and fifty dollars.

According to police, Brooks instructed her to go to a CVS Pharmacy and purchase a Green Dot MoneyPak card then mail it to him. Investigators said luckily she didn't, but they said not everyone realizes when they're caught in a scam.

"Money is going to target people, free things are going to target people," said Edwards.

Edwards told News Channel 7 the Marianna Police Department sees its fair share of scams like this one, and many victims don't come forward. She said that's because people are sometimes too ashamed.

"It's nothing to be embarrassed about.," said Edwards.

But she said to stop the scammers and protect the community, it's the victims who can help most.

"The only way you're going to be able to stop these types of scams is to build on them by information sharing between agencies and states," said Edwards.

If you've been a victim of this scam or any other one, call the Marianna Police Department at 526-3125.