Vigilance urged after couple in Haughley lose £21,200 following scam

Police are warning members of the public to be vigilant after an elderly couple were targeted a number of times by telephone scammers.

On Friday, October 6, a woman from the Windgap Lane area of Haughley, received a telephone call from a man, saying he was a police officer and that he was investigating a fraud and required assistance.

The offender then instructed the woman to withdraw £7,800 from her bank account which was then collected by a man later that day at 4pm.

The following day, the offender telephoned again and asked her to withdraw a further £13,200 which was collected by the same suspect later that day at around 2pm along with £200 cash that the woman already had in the house.

On Monday, October 9, the offender telephoned again demanding that the victim transfer money between her bank accounts. The victim attended a bank to carry this out but bank staff intervened, stopping the transaction. The offender then asked the woman to purchase two Rolex watches worth £18,000 from a jewellers which the victim refused to do.

The man who collected the money is described as being mixed race, in his late 20s or early 30s, skinny, who was wearing smart black trousers and a white shirt.

It is believed that the man who collected the money travelled to the victim’s home by car and police are appealing for anybody who witnessed any suspicious vehicle or activity at the times above to contact Suffolk Police on 101 quoting reference 66261/17.

Residents should remember the following:

Your bank or the police will never ask you to withdraw money or purchase items.

Your bank or the police will never ask for your PIN, bank card or bank account details over the phone – never give these details out.

If you receive such a call leave the landline for at least five minutes to make 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.

Friends, family, carers and neighbours are asked to spread the word to ensure everyone is aware of this scam and what they should do.

For advice on keeping yourself safe against scams, please visit: https://www.suffolk.police.uk/advice/crime-prevention-z.

For more information on this type of crime do visit: http://www.actionfraud.police.uk/news/alert-fraudsters-claiming-to-be-from-hmrc-jun17

Alternatively, report incidents of fraud to Action Fraud using their online reporting tool http://www.actionfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 1232040.

You can also sign up to the Trading Standards weekly email alert on rogues and scams targeting Suffolk at www.suffolk.gov.uk/JoinTheFight.