A SUSPECTED fraudster was arrested in Rugby on Thursday October 6 following a report a woman in Cumbria was conned out of almost £10,000.
It was part of an investigation into a parcel delivery text scam being led by the Warwickshire Police Economic Crime Team.
The woman reported receiving a text message saying a parcel couldn’t be delivered until she made a payment, prompting her to click on a link and enter her bank details.
A few days later she received a call from someone pretending to be from her bank, falsely claiming her card had been used fraudulently and telling her to transfer all her funds into a new account. She transferred almost £10,000 into accounts owned by the fraudsters.
A 22-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of fraud by false representation and later released under investigation while enquiries continued.
Det Sgt Paul Hainsworth from the Warwickshire Police Economic Crime Team said: “This arrest is a good example of how committed we are to pursuing fraudsters in Warwickshire. It also acts as a reminder of just how convincing and deceiving fraudsters can be.
“Our ability to investigate this type of fraud is improving all the time, and this should serve as a warning to criminals.
“It is important people make life as difficult as possible for fraudsters by taking simple steps to protect themselves and reporting any concerns they have.”
Anyone who receives what they believe to be a scam text is asked to forward it to 7726. This is a free text and will raise an alert with the National Cyber Security Centre, which can put measures in place to protect others.
Anyone who believes they have lost money in a scam can report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040.
