Man charged during investigation into scam phone calls

A man has been charged as part of an investigation into scam phone calls across the county.

Officers from Hertfordshire Constabulary’s Serious Fraud and Cyber Unit (SFCU), and the Metropolitan Police Service executed a warrant at an address in Camden on Wednesday 6 February and arrested 35-year-old Rozak Abdul from Camden in relation to fraud offences. Rozak was later charged with fraud by false representation and remanded into custody.

The arrests were made as part of an investigation by the SFCU into a three scam calls made to Hertfordshire victims in St Albans and Watford, and another in Surbiton, South London, by people claiming to be police officers. The victims were convinced by the caller to withdraw a total of £7,000 from their bank accounts and hand the cash over to people also posing as police officers.

Detective Constable Laura Varney, from the Serious Fraud and Cyber Unit, said: “This kind of scam has been tragically common over recent years, with many people losing thousands of pounds. We will continue to do all we can to track down those suspected of being involved in courier fraud and to bring them to justice.

“Unfortunately, this cannot always make up for the money and loss of peace of mind the victims suffer, so it is important to make people aware of this scam so that they do not fall for it. We have done a lot of work to raise awareness of these scams, but we need people to continue spreading the word to elderly friends, relatives and neighbours to help prevent more people falling victim to them.

“Please remember that police and banks would never ask for your PIN over the phone and would never ask you to withdraw cash and hand it to a courier. If you receive a call you are suspicious of, please hang up and alert the police. Remember to wait at least five minutes, or use a mobile phone to ensure you aren’t reconnected to the offender.”

Anyone who thinks they may have been targeted should report it to Action Fraud via 0300 123 2040.