Thugs have become so desperate that they are now targeting their grandparents.

Thugs have become so desperate that they are now targeting their grandparents.

Hundreds of pensioners in Kokstad, KwaZulu-Natal, were left stranded and confused this week after fake money was stashed in pension pay-point machines.

Scores of elderly men and women returned home empty-handed and hungry after the scam was exposed.

There is suspicion that people employed by the private company that maintains the pay-point machines were in collusion with a crime syndicate.

This is unforgivable.

The police need to intensify their investigations and arrest the culprits.

Pensioners do not deserve this heartlessness. They should be treated with respect.