Public urged to stay vigilant following recent scam

From Staffordshire Smart Alert

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We are advising people to stay vigilant following a recent scam where financial fraudsters pretend to be police officers over the phone. 

Yesterday (Monday 24 March), a woman in her 70s received a cold call from a fraudster claiming that there was fraudulent activity on her bank cards. 

She was then instructed to withdraw £2,000 from her bank and £4,000 in euros from a travel agent. The suspect then arranged collection of the money from her home address.

The woman later realised this was a scam and reported it to us. Our enquiries are ongoing. 

We would like to reiterate that police will never ask you to withdraw money from your account or hand over your personal details or passwords. 

If you believe you are being targeted by a scammer hang up the phone and use a different phone line to call Action Fraud or the police, as scammers have a way to stay on the line and will pretend to be the police when you call back. 

If you don’t have access to a different phone line, wait for a period of time and try calling a family member or friend first to make sure the scammer is no longer on the line.

Just because someone knows basic details about you like your address or date of birth, it does not mean they are genuine police or bank employees.

Always question suspicious phone calls and report them to Action Fraud or the police. 

If you think you or someone you know has been defrauded, you can report it to Action Fraud online or by calling 0300 123 2040.

We seized nearly £40,000-worth of cash and arrested six people as part of a national crackdown on fraud recently. 

Public urged to stay vigilant following recent scam - created 26.3.25