81-year-old victim

Fake police officers: new story, old scam

Symbolic image

(Bild: APA/dpa/Jan-Philipp Strobel)

Once again, a gullible woman has fallen victim to a scam and been defrauded of a five-figure euro sum. The 81-year-old woman believed the story of a fake police officer who allegedly wanted to keep her assets safe - he was referring to the numerous ATM break-ins recently. Her assets were no longer safe at the bank ...

The scam per se is not new, just the story adapted to recent events. Fraudsters have now used the numerous ATM burglaries in Vienna and especially eastern Austria to back up the story of the threatened assets of an 81-year-old pensioner. A fraudster used the telephone to scare the woman into believing that her money was no longer safe at the bank.

Fraudster called victim a cab
The victim then took a cab ordered by the caller to two bank branches and withdrew a total of 17,000 euros from her accounts. On her return, the woman waited in her apartment for a supposed police officer.

Crime prevention recommendation

• The police do not keep or accept money!
• Beware of unknown callers!
• Ask yourself: Can the story be true? Talk to relatives or friends immediately!
• Do not reveal any details about your assets!
• Do not allow yourself to be put under pressure - hang up!
• Do not let strangers into your home!
• Never hand over money or gold to strangers!
• Ask alleged police officers for an identity card!
• Contact the emergency number 133 and ask whether this police officer really exists!
• Take warnings from bank employees seriously!
• Do you suspect fraud? Call the police immediately on 133!

The 81-year-old woman let the man dressed in a blue uniform into her apartment and handed him the money she had previously taken. However, the woman suddenly became suspicious and demanded her money back. The suspect then fled with the loot, the police reported on Wednesday. The victim of the fraud then alerted the police, but an immediate manhunt was unsuccessful.

Description of the perpetrator
The suspect is said to be around 35 years old and around 1.80 meters tall. The unidentified man was wearing a dark blue uniform with the word "Polizei" (police) written on it.