Police warning as fake cops scam elderly Derbyshire residents out of thousands of pounds

The fraud sees these fake officers asking people to give money to couriers as part of an investigation. Scammers have been targeting elderly or vulnerable people and in the last week, two elderly residents have lost a substantial amount of money to the scam.

A police spokemsperson said: “We’re encouraging all residents to be on their guard against these calls and to help spread the word with their family members and friends. The scam calls have been reported across the county with an increase in the number of calls received in recent weeks.”

Fraud Protect Officer Tammy Barnes said: “These callers pretend to be investigating a crime involving the victims’ card or bank account. They then ask for money transfers, or even for cash withdrawals or bank cards to be given to a courier, to ‘assist with the investigation’ which the police will never do.”

The cold callers will give a fake name – potentially one of these: DI Cameron, DS Cooper, DC Matthew Phillips and PC Smith

Another warning sign is that the fake officer says not to share any details of the call with anyone as it risks jeopardising the police investigation. This is to apply pressure to the victim to comply and not ask for help.

It’s also important to note on previous occasions the caller has asked the victim to call 999 to verify their claims but instead remains on the line to complete the scam.

The police will never contact you to request banking information or ask for funds to aid an investigation.

If you receive a call like this – hang up and contact police to report it as soon as possible. Officers can then assess where is targeted, alert banks and prevent other scams. Contact police on: Facebook – send a private message to their Facebook page; Twitter – direct message the contact centre via @DerPolContact; Website – use the online contact form or Phone – call on 101

If you wish to phone police to report, wait five minutes after ending the scam call and make sure you hear a dial tone before calling 101.