I've noticed that one of our elderly customers has been sending wires to Kazakhstan for "medication" purposes. This seems suspicious to me of a potential of scam. Despite one of our personal bankers emailing her with a warning, she continues to insist on sending out these wires. Today, she is sending a larger amount. Can I refuse this wire? And how should I communicate this decision to the customer?

Yes, you can refuse to send a wire. You can tell her whatever you wish. If it is truly fraud, a call to APS might be warranted and a SAR could be filed if it is large enough.

i would hope with concern of fraud someone is doing more than sending an email, like a phone call asking them to come to the bank to discuss the activity...especially for an elderly person.

and yes, you can refuse to perform the wire

Thank you for all the good advice! We've also reached out to her by phone but discussing in person is a great idea.

I know I am late to this, but I wanted to add that if the customer was scammed through the internet, it can be reported to IC3. It is the FBI internet crimes division.