Four Quebec women are in police custody in the United States and face charges related to a scam targeting elderly grandparents.

Police in New York allege that the women from Laval told the various seniors they contacted that it was their granddaughter calling and they needed help paying bail after being arrested in another state.

They would tell them not to contact their parents because they didn't want to worry them.

A second person would then take the phone and identify themselves as a police officer and tell them where to send the money.

That person would also tell the seniors not to talk to other authorities about the matter.

Police say the four women — Christina Antonakakis, 29, Sophia Mikelakis, 57, Nora Apkarian, 42, and Anahid Apkarian, 61 — allegedly travelled to Albany, N.Y., earlier this month to collect packages sent by their various victims to a UPS depot there.

All four women face charges of 3rd-degree criminal possession of property.

Antonakakis and Mikelakis also face charges of 3rd-degree attempted grand larceny.