The scammer’s version: The son had run over a woman. To prevent his arrest, bail had to be paid urgently.

Outside her apartment block, the woman handed tens of thousands of zlotys to an unknown man. Officers are asking anyone with information that could help identify and apprehend those responsible for this crime to contact the Criminal Division of the Municipal Police Headquarters in Jelenia Góra

  • in person: 22 Armii Krajowej Street, 2nd floor
  • by telephone – 75 75 20 199 or the police emergency number 997.

Scammers’ activities involve extorting money from older people who live alone. After choosing a victim, criminals call and pretend to be a family member. They can manipulate the conversation so effectively that the victims themselves provide the necessary information, such as who they live with, where their family is, whether they have any valuables, when they are at home and the names of individual family members.

Using an altered voice, they may pretend to be, for example, a grandchild or son-in-law who is in a difficult family, financial or personal situation and asks for help. When the victim finds the voice suspicious, scammers often explain it by claiming to have an illness or to have undergone a medical procedure.

When the supposed grandchild is meant to come for the money, he calls to say that he cannot come for very important reasons—illness, hospitalisation, a trip, and so on. Instead, he will send a trusted friend. The stand-in friend arrives, collects the cash and, of course… is never seen again.

Sometimes criminals pretend to be police officers on the phone, convincing the potential victim that the police can apprehend the perpetrator only after receiving money. They tell the people they call that officers in plain clothes will come to collect it.

Criminals prey on people’s naivety and primarily target older people. Therefore, officers are asking residents of our region to look after their elderly relatives and warn them about such behaviour. Do not provide any information over the phone about your home, savings, when you are at home or who you live with. Do not answer any surveys containing similar questions. Do not hand over cash or any other items to strangers. Do not let survey takers, salespeople or other suspiciously behaving people into your home. Always call the relative back using a known number. Contact another family member to confirm such an incident.

KMP Jelenia Góra/ii