North Yorkshire Police warning over courier fraud scam

Officers say they have had several reports of people receiving a phone call from someone posing as a Metropolitan Police officer.

The victims have been told that someone has attempted to use their card to buy a laptop or similar, and as a result their bank account is under threat.

The caller then tells the victim to go to their bank and withdraw all their money so that a ‘police officer’ can come to their home and take the money for ‘safe keeping’.

These fraudsters will often suggest the victim calls 999 to check the call is genuine but will not clear the phone line so that when the victim thinks they have dialled 999 and that they are talking to the police control room, they are still speaking to the fraudster.

The victim will be warned that the bank might challenge them about withdrawing all their money but told to say that the money is for a new car or building work.

The fraudster may claim that the bank is involved in the threat to the victim’s money and that the ‘police operation’ to help them is undercover.

Once the victim returns home with the cash, the fraudster, posing as a police officer, will come and collect the money, potentially using a password agreed between the victim and the fraudster.

Det Insp Jon Hodgeon, Head of North Yorkshire Police’s Economic Crime Unit, said: “This is a sophisticated fraud perpetrated by experienced criminals who convince the victim their bank account is under threat and they need to act quickly to safeguard their money and to assist a police operation to catch criminals.

“Although it is a fairly common type of fraud, we’ve heard a number of reports over the last week here in North Yorkshire so I’d urge everyone to be vigilant and make sure you know what to do in case you receive one of these calls.

“A police officer will never get in touch and advise you to withdraw, transfer or pay money and neither will a bank or building society.

“If you receive a call out of the blue by someone claiming to be from the police asking you to withdraw or transfer your money, this is a scam and you must terminate the call immediately.

“If the person you are talking to ever asks you to lie to the bank or the police, you can be pretty sure it is a scam and again, you should hang up immediately.

“If you suspect you’ve been scammed, report it to the police by calling 101 and we will be able to support you as well as protecting others from falling victim to the same fraudsters.”

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