A criminal posing as an orthopedic doctor working on missions in Yemen or Somalia contacted a 74-year-old woman from Wrocław. First, he gained her trust, and then ruthlessly exploited it. The supposed doctor asked the Wrocław resident, among other things, for money to enable him to leave Yemen or secure his release from detention in Somalia.
As one might expect, the scammer’s fabricated problems did not end there. Police officers:
After the money was transferred to the account, it turned out that the person was supposedly falling from one predicament into another, and further sums of money were needed to get him out of them.
The gullible senior, acting out of goodwill, gave the criminal a total of more than PLN 150,000. At first, the Wrocław resident transferred her savings. Eventually, however, they ran out.
The woman then began borrowing money from banks, friends and family. Investigators: – Interestingly, but also alarmingly, none of these people became suspicious.
The officers add:
The example described above is just one of the many ways scammers operate. Criminals impersonate people in need of help, institution employees and even police officers. The pretext they use in attempts to scam us is limited only by their imagination.
And they emphasize:
However, together we can reduce the number of victims of scammers. Let us talk to our loved ones about criminals’ methods and the principle of limited trust, and follow this principle ourselves. By taking basic precautions and verifying people who ask us for help, we can protect ourselves from fraud.