Conman pretends to be police in bid to gain information

Sep 9 2010 by Leona Greenan, Hamilton Advertiser

A CONMAN tried to dupe an Uddingston woman into giving out information after claiming to be a police officer.

The female resident, of Broomfield Terrace, received a telephone call on Thursday, September 2, from a man stating he was a crime prevention officer.

The conman asked his victim questions regarding the security of the woman’s property and times when her house was vacant.

Fortunately, the woman suspicious of the man and contacted the police.

This latest call is thought to be linked to a series of incidents in which salesmen pose as police officers in a bid to dupe elderly, vulnerable and unsuspecting householders into buying expensive alarm systems.

According to cops, the crooks quote false crime statistics to try and scare people into signing up to an extortionate monthly payment plan for an alarm system.

Inspector Stewart Hurry of Bellshill police office has urged the public to never give out information over the phone and stressed that police will never cold call.

He said: “This latest incident follows a scenario similar to that highlighted to the public a couple of weeks ago.

“Individuals appear to have information which allows them to target older members of our communities. They gain the trust of the person by alleging they are from the local police looking to provide them with alarms and obtain personal information.

“The individual then gets another call from a company offering to fit the alarm and they are persuaded to sign a service contract at exorbitant prices.

“The police will never cold call offering this type of service over the phone. Advice about alarm systems is available but householders need to contact the police first to ask for the information and arrangements will then be made for an officer to call at the house at a pre-arranged time.

“We also never recommend a single company and advise residents to get quotes from several companies to be sure of getting the best price for the equipment they need.

“Personal information should never be given out over the phone unless you are 100 per cent certain about who you are talking too.”

If anyone has been targeted in this way or has received any other suspicious calls, they should contact Trading Standards on 01355 806597.

If anyone would like to discuss any particular aspect of home or personal safety, they should contact their local police station.

Alternatively, contact the local community police officer who will be happy to advise on any aspects of home safety.