Police warning : Bogus officers target pin numbers

Police in Lewisham are alerting the public about the latest scam.

This is how the scam works: a bogus detective by the name of ‘Adam Clark’ (but please note that any other name may be provided) rings the victim claiming to call from the police custody suite in Hammersmith (please note they can equally use a police station in another area). ‘DC Clark’ claims that he has a suspect in custody who has been caught using the victim’s credit or debit cards.

He asks the victim to put all bank cards and pin numbers in an envelope and explains that he has arranged a courier to pick the envelope. The scammer may sound credible as he provides a crime number and a shoulder number.

What should you do if you get a call; do not make any arrangements with the caller and do not handover your cards. Police officers would never ask you to provide your bank cards and pin numbers and would never use a courier to collect your bank cards. Attend your local police station and report it or call police on 101, or your local Safer Neighbourhoods Team.

Every year the British public loses billions of pounds to ‘scammers’, who bombard people with online, mail, door-to-door and telephone scams.

Officers within the Metropolitan Police Service’s Specialist and Economic Crime Directorate have produced a comprehensive fraud prevention booklet entitled, ‘The Little Book of Big Scams’ – ask your local team for a copy of the booklet if interested.

Your local team is Sydenham Safer Neighbourhood Team

You can call us on 0208 649 3598/ 07843 065921.

Email: Sydenham.SNT@met.police.uk