Police investigate lottery fraud

Cumbria Constabulary has appealed for people to be on their guard against fraudsters after an elderly gentleman was conned out of nearly £26,000 in a complex lottery scam.

The warning came after it was discovered that a man from the Kendal area had been conned into parting with £25,600 over a two month period.

He received an initial phone call telling him he had been entered into a prize draw. The following week he received a further call informing him he had won a third prize and would be later informed how much he had won.

He was then asked to send a sum of money to release the prize. Shortly after, he received a phone call to advise him that his winnings have increased and more money was required.

This was the first of many calls of a similar nature, asking for cheques to be sent to various locations in the UK or Spain. After sending seven transactions, the victim received no winnings and realised he had been the victim of fraud.

PC Jane Collyer, said: “If you receive calls asking for you to send money in order to receive a prize, alarm bells should ring and you should contact police immediately. The money does not exist, and these conmen will go to any length to try and get your life savings.

“Please pass this warning on to elderly or vulnerable friends, neighbours and relatives so that they do not fall foul of these scams.”

Police are asking people to take the following precautions:

• Do not make direct contact with people claiming to have winnings from a competition you have not entered.

• Never give out personal details, in particular bank details, over the phone, by post or by email.

• Do not send cash, cheques or money transfers to sources that you do not know or trust.

• If you have any doubts about the legitimacy of callers or businesses, then alert Cumbria Police, who will be more than happy to come and look over the correspondence with you.

• If you want to check out a company do not use the contact details they provide to you - use the yellow pages or directory enquiries to ensure you get the genuine contact details.

If anybody has information about this scam or can help police with their enquiries, they are urged to contact south Cumbria CID on 0845 33 00 247 or call Crimestoppers to provide information anonymously on 0800 555 111.