The Isle of Wight council’s Trading Standards team share this latest warning. Ed
Our Trading Standards team are asking the public to warn elderly friends and relatives after a woman lost £9,000 to fraudsters posing as police officers.
Told to call 999
The 87-year-old victim was called by a woman who said the victim’s card had been used to buy an expensive camera and that she should dial 999.
The victim did so, but the fraudster stayed on the line and a man claiming to be from the fraud department of London Police ‘answered’ the victim’s call.
He told her that they were investigating a fraud involving staff at the victim’s bank.
Persuaded to withdraw £9,000
The victim was persuaded to withdraw £9,000 from the bank to help with the investigation, and urged not to tell any member of staff what was happening unless they gave an agreed codeword.
A ‘courier’ later came to the victim’s house to collect the money for examination.
A common scam
This is a common scam that unfortunately preys on our vulnerable residents and while the details may not always be the same, the method generally follows the above.
If in any doubt, check with police or trading standards first.
Image: mike_stach_-_koelsche_fotografie under CC BY 2.0
