Please be alert after bogus officer scam
Wednesday, 9th September 2015.
Police are urging residents to be alert after a couple were conned into handing over £5,000 to a man posing as an officer.
The incident happened on Monday, 7 September. Around 12.30pm the lady resident, in her 80s, took a phone call from a man claiming to be a detective with the Metropolitan Police.
He told her there had been a fraud on her and her husbands’ bank account and that people had been arrested. He then said that she would need to go to her bank and withdraw cash and that this would be collected to be tested. He instructed her not to hang up the phone and gave her numbers to call to confirm his identity. She called these numbers, not realising that the line was still open and that she was still talking to those involved in the scam.
She then went into Ipswich and withdrew the money.
A man arrived at their home in north-west Ipswich around 7pm and took the cash. He is described as possibly being of mixed race, with a brown complexion, in his 20s, around 5ft 6ins tall, of slim build with black hair described as being in an Elvis Presley style. He wore dark glasses, spoke with an accent and may have been wearing brown tracksuit-style clothing, and was carrying a bag.
Police are asking anyone who may have seen a man matching this description in the Larchcroft Road/ Dale Hall Lane/ Congreve Road/ Hazelcroft Road area around this time on Monday to come forward. Anyone who may have seen him get into a vehicle is also asked to call in. Anyone who has information that may assist is asked to contact DC Ian Stockwell at Ipswich CID by dialling Suffolk Police on 101 and quoting crime number IW/15/3953.
Officers are also urging residents not to hand over cash or cards to callers under similar circumstances. Scammers are known to make calls like this to con you into handing over money, bank cards or personal information so please be extremely cautious when dealing with unknown callers.
Please talk with older friends or relatives to make them aware of these bogus approaches.
Police and bank staff will never ask you to handover money or bank cards, and they will not ask for personal information such as your bank account number or PIN.
Officers are also advising;
• The police will never call you and ask you to withdraw money from your account to give to a courier, taxi driver, officer or any other party regardless of how convincing they may seem
• If you receive such a call leave the landline for at least five minutes before making an outside call. Fraudsters will keep the line open and have been known to play ring tones, hold music and a recorded message down the phone so the victim believes they are making a call to a legitimate number.
• Use a friend or neighbour’s telephone instead and call Suffolk Police by dialling 101.
Police are also calling on bank staff to remain vigilant where large sums are withdrawn. Several scams have been thwarted in the past due to the good work of alert bank personnel and you can be a vital link in preventing this type of crime.
The incident happened on Monday, 7 September. Around 12.30pm the lady resident, in her 80s, took a phone call from a man claiming to be a detective with the Metropolitan Police.
He told her there had been a fraud on her and her husbands’ bank account and that people had been arrested. He then said that she would need to go to her bank and withdraw cash and that this would be collected to be tested. He instructed her not to hang up the phone and gave her numbers to call to confirm his identity. She called these numbers, not realising that the line was still open and that she was still talking to those involved in the scam.
She then went into Ipswich and withdrew the money.
A man arrived at their home in north-west Ipswich around 7pm and took the cash. He is described as possibly being of mixed race, with a brown complexion, in his 20s, around 5ft 6ins tall, of slim build with black hair described as being in an Elvis Presley style. He wore dark glasses, spoke with an accent and may have been wearing brown tracksuit-style clothing, and was carrying a bag.
Police are asking anyone who may have seen a man matching this description in the Larchcroft Road/ Dale Hall Lane/ Congreve Road/ Hazelcroft Road area around this time on Monday to come forward. Anyone who may have seen him get into a vehicle is also asked to call in. Anyone who has information that may assist is asked to contact DC Ian Stockwell at Ipswich CID by dialling Suffolk Police on 101 and quoting crime number IW/15/3953.
Officers are also urging residents not to hand over cash or cards to callers under similar circumstances. Scammers are known to make calls like this to con you into handing over money, bank cards or personal information so please be extremely cautious when dealing with unknown callers.
Please talk with older friends or relatives to make them aware of these bogus approaches.
Police and bank staff will never ask you to handover money or bank cards, and they will not ask for personal information such as your bank account number or PIN.
Officers are also advising;
• The police will never call you and ask you to withdraw money from your account to give to a courier, taxi driver, officer or any other party regardless of how convincing they may seem
• If you receive such a call leave the landline for at least five minutes before making an outside call. Fraudsters will keep the line open and have been known to play ring tones, hold music and a recorded message down the phone so the victim believes they are making a call to a legitimate number.
• Use a friend or neighbour’s telephone instead and call Suffolk Police by dialling 101.
Police are also calling on bank staff to remain vigilant where large sums are withdrawn. Several scams have been thwarted in the past due to the good work of alert bank personnel and you can be a vital link in preventing this type of crime.
E-Mail Link: http://www.suffolk-pcc.gov.uk
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