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Fraudsters are contacting elderly and vulnerable individuals via landline, posing as police officers or other authority figures. They inform the victims of fraudulent activity on their bank accounts, claiming that corrupt bank staff and police officers are involved. The criminals then instruct the victims to withdraw large amounts of cash or purchase high-value items such as jewellery or foreign currency from their local bank or Post Office. The victims are told that a police courier will collect these items for examination. Often, victims use local taxis for these journeys. Enquiries have revealed the following: Many couriers travel from London to the Northwest by train.Upon arrival at local train stations, they hire taxis to reach the victims' addresses.After collecting the cash/valuables, they return to the train station and board the next train back to London.Couriers operate in Merseyside, Cheshire, and Greater Manchester and may remain in the area for a few weeks.Occasionally, they meet victims in car parks of retail parks. Request for Action: Vigilance: Taxi drivers are asked to be vigilant of journeys to and from local train stations by potential couriers.Reporting: If a suspected courier is collected as a passenger, taxi drivers are requested to call the Police on '999', providing their taxi VRM, location, and destination. The relevant Force control room will recognise this as courier fraud and deploy appropriate resources.Awareness: Taxi drivers are encouraged to raise awareness among elderly passengers and consider unusual repeat fares to local banks or locations. If such fares are identified, drivers are again requested to contact the Police. |
