Telephone fraud Telephone fraudsters steal 18,000 francs in the canton of Bern
The Bern cantonal police have registered over 20 reports of fraudulent phone calls since mid-September. In one case, 18,000 francs were stolen, in another case a suspected courier was arrested.
30.09.2024, 14:57
SDA
In the scam involving over 18,000 francs, an elderly woman was contacted by an unknown perpetrator via a telephone call, the Bern cantonal police and the cantonal public prosecutor's office for economic crime announced in a joint press release on Monday.
The callers pretended to be either a police officer, a bank employee or an employee of an electronics store and claimed that a false booking had been made. The victims called were asked to withdraw a large sum of money from their account. A courier would pick up the cash later due to police investigations.
In another attempted scam, the Bern cantonal police were able to arrest a person living in Switzerland when the money was handed over.
The police urge caution and distrust when unknown persons call and demand money or valuables. Suspicious calls should be reported to the police. In addition, no personal data, passwords or details of financial circumstances should be disclosed.
