A VICTIM has spoken out to warn members of the public after he was the target of a courier fraud.

Dorset Police received a report that on Wednesday, May 25, a man aged in his 80s received a call from someone claiming to be from his bank. They told him he needed to move his money into another account and persuaded him to send £2,500 to an address in the London area.

After the fraud was reported, officers were able to intercept the delivery and return the funds to the victim, who lives in Poole. An investigation into the incident remains ongoing.

The victim in the case has now bravely shared his experience in a bid to raise awareness and encourage others who are targeted to report incidents to police.

He said: “I answered the phone and because they were so clear about my account, I thought this has to be the bank.

“For some reason I just carried on and did it. After a while – at around 1am the next morning I just started thinking this is not right. I called the police and they said they would look into it straight away.”

The victim said he would urge anyone who has any doubts about a call to challenge the caller and take steps to validate their identity.

A further report was received on Wednesday, June 8, that another elderly man in Poole was targeted by scammers who called him and pretended to be from his bank. They persuaded him to send £4,350 to an address in London, which officers from Dorset Police were able to recover and return to the victim.

Detective Sergeant Jane Millard, of Dorset Police’s Fraud Triage Team, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to urge members of the public to be vigilant and make sure elderly relatives are aware of this scam. Your bank should never ask you to withdraw large sums of money and send it to a postal address.

“If you have any doubts about the validity of someone who contacts you claiming to be from your bank or another organisation, take their details then ring back through a listed number and ask to speak to that individual, or go into your local branch."