Fraudsters trick man out of £7k on Christmas Eve

An elderly man was conned out of thousands of pounds on Christmas Eve by a fraudster posing as a police officer.

The victim, in his 80s, received a phone call from an unknown number with the caller claiming to be a DC Henderson based at Doncaster Police Station on College Road.

South Yorkshire Police said the victim was asked to help in an "undercover operation" focused on employees at a local bank and told to withdraw £7,450 as part of the bogus operation, which he then handed over to a courier.

Urging people to be vigilant, the force said it had received five other reports of similar calls from people pretending to be police officers in the last week.

Fraud protection officer Charlotte Platts said: "Unfortunately, we have received several reports of this scam in South Yorkshire over the festive period.

"This scam can not only result in the loss of significant amounts of money but also have a real impact on the victim's health and wellbeing."

Ms Platts said police had "no idea" about the identity of the fraudster.

"People are falling victim to it more because it has been specific to them and they can relate to them," she added.

"This type of fraud tends to target the vulnerable and the elderly."

Police said the scam typically involved victims receiving a phone call from a criminal pretending to be from the police or another official organisation, such as a bank.

The fraudster then claims there is an issue with the victim's bank account or requests the victim's help in an ongoing bank or police investigation.

Victims are then asked to withdraw a large sum of money which will be collected by a courier for "evidence".

The force issued the following tips on how to spot scams:

• The police or your bank will never call you to ask you to verify your financial details by phone. Hang up if you get a call like this.

• If you do get a call and need to call your bank back to check, wait five minutes. Find a number for the bank you know and trust, from the back of your card or a statement. Fraudsters have been known to stay on the line after you hang up so when you ring your bank back you are connected back to the scammers.

• Do not let a stranger take your bank card from you. You should only ever have to hand it over at your bank.

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