Scots phone scammers con £45,000 from 3 victims

Police believe the body could be that of a man missing for nearly three years. Picture: John Devlin

Detectives investigating the phone scam in Dumfries and Galloway have identified a third victim, taking the sum of cash stolen to more than £45,000.

All three were called by someone purporting to be from their bank and were asked to transfer their cash into a different account to avoid being hacked.

In the latest case reported by Police Scotland, a 70-year-old woman from Newton Stewart was targeted on Saturday and lost £18,000 before realising she had been scammed.

The same day, a 64-year-old woman from the town was contacted and transferred £12,000 out of her account.

It emerged yesterday that a Stranraer man aged 78 was conned out of more than £15,000 on Monday after taking a call from someone claiming to be from the Bank of Scotland.

Police said in a statement: “A number of other near misses have also been reported to police where the scam has been identified before any monies have been transferred.

“Police Scotland ask that anyone who has been called, whether they identified the scam or are actually a victim, having transferred funds, should contact police immediately through 101.”