Shropshire Star

Bogus police officer tricks woman into leaving large sum of cash outside her Telford home

A Telford woman was tricked by a bogus police officer into leaving a large sum of money outside her home.

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Police have warned residents to be on their guard

The victim, who is in her 60s and from Arleston, was called by a man claiming to be from the police.

She was told that she had been a victim of a fraud and that she needed to withdraw a large amount of money from her bank while remaining on the phone.

One she got home, she was told to place it outside where it was be collected by a courier.

The man who collected the money is described as black, of a large build and wearing a high visibility jacket.

It's believed he may have been travelling in a blue Volkswagen Golf with a registration plate ending in RUU.

Residents were today warned to be on their guard in case the man tries it again.

Detective Inspector William Scott, who is based at Telford Police Station, said: "A thorough investigation is under way and enquiries are currently ongoing. If anyone witnessed any suspicious behaviour in the area around this time on Thursday, or has had any calls of a similar nature, please do get in contact.

"Unfortunately scams of this nature can be very convincing and cruel, and we are doing a lot of work with our partner agencies to tackle these offences. As part of this, we are asking the public to talk to people, particularly elderly relatives or neighbours, and to warn them about calls of this nature.

"If you think someone is trying to scam you, tell someone straight away. Don't be pressured. Give yourself time to stop and think. And please remember that the police would never contact you asking for your bank card or cash. If someone does, it's a scam - provide no details and hand nothing over, hang up and report it immediately."

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call West Mercia Police on 101, quoting incident number 106s of 18 May 2018.

Alternatively people can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 or at crimestoppers-uk.org

Further fraud prevention advice can be found at westmercia.police.uk/article/46374/Fraud