Conmen swindle thousands of pounds from Tadworth family
Surrey Police is reminding members of the community to be on their guard after a bogus caller conned thousands of pounds from a vulnerable Tadworth family.
The incident occurred on Wednesday, 14 April, in Merland Rise, when a man claiming to be the victim’s neighbour told her work needed to be done to a shared water pipe. The first family victim later received a phone call from a bogus utility company stating that in order to carry out the repairs she had to pay £13,000 to hire the equipment.
The caller was persuasive and intimidating on the phone and convinced the victim to go to her bank to arrange a bank transfer for the £13,000 fee. A further phone call was made to another family member whilst the victim was out, demanding cash for the work and adding a courier would collect it later that day from the corner of Preston Lane and Merland Rise, £4,000 was subsequently handed over.
The suspect called again in the evening demanding a further £9,000 was paid in cash the next day. When the victim once again went to his bank the vigilant bank staff raised the alarm and refused to withdraw the amount from the victims account.
A total of £17,000 was extorted from the family in cash and a bank transfer.
The first suspect, who pretended to be the neighbour, is described as a white man, approximately 5ft 4’ tall, fair wavy hair, medium build, wearing light coloured trousers and light coloured short jacket, clean shaven and spoke with an eastern European accent.
The second suspect (telephone conversation) had an English accent.
Investigating Officer, Detective Constable David Warner said: "This is an abhorrent crime, targeting vulnerable people in this way is despicable. The family were frightened into handing over a large sum of money to a person that was acting in an official capacity. Once again these criminals preyed on the victims trusting nature.
"I would urge anyone who was in the area of Merland Rise and Preston Lane last Wednesday (14 April) to come forward with any information they think maybe relevant to this incident. I would also add to all members of the public to watch out for anyone calling on friends and family to double check there credentials or perhaps challenge someone you don’t recognise calling. By working together we can ensure vulnerable members of our community are safe and those who prey on them are locked up."
These simple steps will help reduce the possibility of being tricked by bogus callers.
● If they are strangers, be sure to ask ‘Who are you? Where are you from, What do you want?’
● Take a note of the company, name and telephone number. If in doubt, phone the company and check. Genuine staff from utility companies won’t mind waiting or will call back later
● If you are at all concerned, call 999 immediately.
Call 0845 125 2222 for all non-
Call 999 if you have a genuine emergency requiring the attendance of the police (eg a crime is in progress or someone is in immediate danger).
Call independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 if you have information about crime and don't want to leave your name.
Ends SW/110/10
Police notices