Four reports of courier fraud in 24 hours as £10,000 and jewellery stolen

Four reports of courier fraud in 24 hours as £10,000 and jewellery stolen

Police received four reports of courier fraud in 24 hours across Suffolk last week, with criminals stealing £10,000 in one incident and taking jewellery in another.

It was reported on Wednesday 28 October, that an elderly couple had £10,000 stolen in foreign currency when a courier collected the cash after being contacted by two people alleging to be detectives from the Metropolitan Police.

The fraudsters alleged the couple were the victims of an online bank account fraud that was being covertly investigated and that the movement of finances and handing over of cash was required to assist with enquiries.

In another incident on 28 October, a woman aged in her 90s was targeted by men purporting to be from the Metropolitan Police, suggesting the victim was under suspicion due to an arrest of a man in London. No money or items were stolen on this occasion.

On 27 October a woman aged in her 70s was contacted by a person pretending to be a member of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) working alongside NatWest bank, claiming they needed her jewellery and bank cards, with a courier later collecting these.

A further incident took place on 27 October when a victim aged in their 70s was contacted by a person claiming they were from Lloyd’s Bank fraud support team, stating that there had been fraudulent activity on their account with payments in Scotland and Liverpool. The victim provided bank details after being instructed to, while a car was sent to collect her bank cards. The victim however became suspicious and refused to transfer any money before cancelling her cards and blocking her accounts. It is not believed that the victim suffered any financial losses.

Lauren Speirs, Suffolk Constabulary’s Fraud Prevent Officer, said: “These incidents took place across the county, with a variety of ages affected, but all of the victims on this occasion were over 70.

“In Suffolk more than 40% of all crime is now fraud related and these crimes are being carried out by organised, well-versed, highly persuasive people.

“Sadly, those aged between 76 and 96 account for around 62 per cent of all reports of courier fraud in the country. However, we do find that we have victims of all ages. The criminals are playing on our emotions, our trust and our fears.

“None of us want to think we have been victims of fraud, so when an organisation such as the police, a bank or the FAC get in touch people are naturally trusting, they want to help and they want to ensure their money doesn’t fall into the hands of criminals.

“Unfortunately, these fears are utilised by the criminals and victims are left distraught at the financial losses. They are often also left with concerns about their ongoing safety.

“It is important that everyone is aware of these crimes and the methodology used, but equally it is important that all incidents, whether there are financial losses or not, are reported.

“This allows us to gather vital evidence on the individuals and groups carrying out these crimes, but also helps provide awareness, hopefully preventing further people from falling victim. Please do not suffer in silence.”

Courier fraud occurs when people are contacted by people pretending to be police officers or bank officials and convinced into handing over money, valuables or bank cards, which are collected from their home address, often by couriers. The criminals use a variety of different tactics, often claiming that there is a problem with your account and they need your help to catch the real criminals.

Previously victims have had money stolen after the ‘FCA’ contacted them. They stole from the victim via the online transfer of money, loans being taken out in the victim’s name and the collection of gold.

Other methods of theft included credit cards being collected from victims with amounts then spent using these, as well as the handing over large amounts of cash.

Some tactics include being contacted by fake companies, pretending to be a police officer or pretending to be an official investigating fraudulent foreign currency.

Police are urging residents to share this warning with elderly and vulnerable family members, friends and neighbours – but stress that anyone can fall victim to these sophisticated crimes.

If you know of anyone that you feel might be susceptible to this, please help ensure they are aware of the dangers and consider measures such as call blockers.

Officers have put together a list of some of the tactics used by the criminals to help advise members of the public:

The fraudsters are very convincing. They will use a variety of techniques to make themselves seem plausible.

They often claim to be from the Metropolitan police and will provide a name that sounds legitimate, for example PC 85372 Barker or DC Colin Phillips from the Fraud Squad. They may even set up a password and say that it must be used in every conversation.

They are able to use technology that makes the caller ID look like a local or London number. They may call from a withheld number.

On some occasions they advise that fraud has been occurring within their bank or their local police force and they need the person’s help to catch those responsible. Alternatively, they may say that there has been fraudulent activity on the person’s account. This may be alleged fraud by people dispensing cash from the banks, counterfeit money having been paid into someone’s account or large-scale fraud at a bank branch.

They may advise the victim to hang up and then call police on 999 or 101 to check they are genuine. The fraudster will stay on the line when the victim hangs up and in some cases play a dialling tone so it sounds like they have hung up. When the victim dials 999 they are actually still speaking to the criminal or an accomplice.

If you have any concerns about the legitimacy of the call please contact the police, ideally via another phone line or other method, to verify the details of the officer provided in the call.

The fraudster will usually ask the victim to withdraw a large sum of cash from the bank to ‘test the system’ or ‘reveal the fraud’. Victims are told that they will get the money repaid, sometimes with a reward as well. They may ask for a credit card and PIN. They will say that the victim must not tell anyone else what they are doing as this is a secret/covert operation.

They will often provide a cover story for the victim to use at the bank, for example they are having building work done and the builder will only accept cash, or that it is for a grandchild who is getting married.

They may tell the victim that they need to keep their phone with them when visiting the bank and on to remain on a call to the fraudster to provide ‘evidence’ of the offence taking place as a reassurance for the victim. They will say the phone should be out of view.

Once the cash has been withdrawn, they will often send a courier to collect it. This is sometimes via a local taxi firm or other transport service such as Uber. The courier will provide the password and take the cash/card. Sometimes people are asked to leave the cash/card hidden somewhere close to the house.

They may call back and ask for more cash. They perpetrators can become threatening.

Victims have also been asked for gold, jewellery or gift vouchers.

Police officers and other professionals will never:

Ask for bank details or PINs

Request cash or bank card handovers to couriers

Demand money transfers to other accounts

Ask for payment of fines or fees over the phone

Request access to your computer or passwords

Ask you to 'assist' in an investigation by doing any of the above

If you have any concerns or feel you or someone you know may have been targeted, please report it.

Reports can be made to both the police and to Report Fraud, while further advice on this and other scams is available on the Report Fraud website: Courier fraud - Report Fraud

In an emergency or for a crime in progress you should always call 999.

Reply to this message

Message Sent By
Suffolk Connected