Wanted to "go home"

Fraudster pretended to be a poor victim of theft

The fraudster pretended to be the victim of a thief.

(Bild: Patrick Huber)

A previously unknown man in Vienna has defrauded people of their money with a particularly brazen lie. He pretended to be a poor victim and took advantage of his gullible counterpart's willingness to help. Several people fell for the scam. The police are now asking for information!

The stranger probably used the approaching Christmas in December last year to appeal to the compassion and charity of passers-by. The perpetrator spoke to young people on the street in English and told them a sad story. He said he was a tourist, had been robbed in Austria and now had no more cash to return home - thanks to forged documents, he claimed to be in Ireland or Great Britain.

The police are asking for information.

(Bild: LPD Wien)

Fake bank transfer
In fact, he was able to soften the hearts of at least two victims in this way. They recovered cash in the four-digit range (between 1000 and 2000 euros) and handed it over to the man. Particularly perfidious: shortly afterwards, the stranger pretended to transfer the money received from his account back to the victim's account via a banking app - which never happened.

According to the police, five other similar cases of fraud are probably also attributable to the suspect. The Vienna Provincial Police Directorate is now requesting the publication of the photos by order of the Vienna Public Prosecutor's Office.

Any useful information (including anonymous information) should be sent to the Criminal Investigation Department of the Inner City Police Command on 01-31310-21810.