Sick scammers target OAP (88)

Man lost life savings to fraudsters

An elderly Callander man has been scammed out of up to £4000 after being targeted by suspected Nigerian fraudsters.

The 88-year-old lost his life savings after being duped into handing over the cash.

He paid the money after being told that making regular payments would unlock access to eight million American dollars.

The man had made several bank transfers to the swindler over a twoyear period but the incident was not reported to police until July 26 this year.

Because of his embarrassment over being duped, the man has opted not to inform family members about the cash loss.

Inspector Jo Jollie, from Callander police office, explained: “He received an email informing him that he could access millions of dollars.

“It has been coming on for two years where he continually handed money over and has lost thousands of pounds.

“The gentleman is very upset and embarrassed about it. It’s sickening.” It’s believed that the man was told that regular payment would give him the access to an ATM card which contained the American currency.

Because the scam has been going on over a prolonged period, police have had difficulty pinpointing how much the man forked out, but it’s believed to be between £3000 and £4000.

Inspector Jollie added: “It’s suspected that the scam originated in Nigeria and enquiries are ongoing.

“We would want anyone who receives these types of emails to check with their banks or discuss it with their family before handing over any money. If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.”

The latest incident came to light following a spate of scams across Stirling area this year.

In May, the Observer reported how an Indian student, studying at Stirling University, was conned out of £1000 when fraudsters threatened her over her immigration status.

The 19-year-old was contacted and told that there was an issue with her landing card and that she had to pay to have it resolved.

In June, a second international student from the university was targeted.

The 24-year-old Chinese man lost thousands of pounds after being told he was subject to a criminal investigation and that unless a sum of money was paid, an international arrest warrant would be sought.

Last month, two people in Bridge of Allan were left thousands of pounds out of pocket after being targeted by telephone scammers.

Fraudsters claiming to be from a phone provider called their victims to tell them they had to pay back a refund they were supposedly given.

They then asked them to transfer large sums of money to another account.

We’d want anyone who receives these emails to check with their banks or discuss it with their family