A North Kitsap senior citizen trying to help his grandson was duped out of $6,000.

It’s a scam that has appeared before in Kitsap County.

The man, whose hometown was not noted in sheriff’s office reports, told an investigator Thursday that he had received a call from someone claiming to be his grandson.

The man said the grandson said he had been arrested for drunken driving, and needed money. He didn’t want his parents to know he had got into trouble, and the grandfather complied with the request, wiring the money to Kelowna, British Columbia.

Someone claiming to be a police officer also talked to the grandfather.

The grandfather wired two installments of about $3,000 apiece for various legal and impound fees, the report said, until the grandfather was out of money.

The North Kitsap man called his son to ask if had heard from the grandson, and explained the situation, when he realized he had been scammed.

An 83-year-old Kitsap woman fell victim to a similar scam in August, 2008, where a man claiming to be the woman’s grandson said he had been in a car crash and needed money. The woman sent about $4,700 before realizing she had been swindled.