Yesterday, the South Kurzeme station of the Kurzeme Region Administration of the State Police received information from a woman from Liepāja, who was blackmailed by fraudsters, claiming that her granddaughter had caused an accident abroad.
As the police found out, the woman was called by a fraudster who pretended to be her granddaughter, saying that she had been involved in a traffic accident and that the police would call the old woman immediately and tell her everything. The woman received the next call from a fraudster who pretended to be a police officer, saying that she needed money – 30,000 euros. At the same time, during the conversation, the man repeated “stay on the phone”, do not call anyone” and urged the woman to act quickly.
The woman returned the saved money – 10,000 euros to a man sent by the fraudster – a courier or money mule. Officials of the State Police have started criminal proceedings for the incident and the investigation is ongoing.
Also, yesterday, the South Zemgale station of the Zemgale regional administration of the State Police received an application from a Jelgav woman who was beaten up by fraudsters, claiming that her daughter caused the accident and that she needed money to “get her daughter out of the situation”. The woman believed what the swindlers told her and prepared 37,000 euros, which was taken by a courier sent by the swindlers. Criminal proceedings have been initiated in this case as well.
Law enforcement officers remind that police officers and employees of other public institutions do not call to obtain cash, bank cards or bank account details. Such telephone calls must be stopped immediately. If you still have doubts, whether the call came from the specific institution, you should call the phone number indicated on the institution’s official website and make sure of it.
The State Police strongly warns citizens not to respond to suspicious job offers from unidentified employers, especially those related to receiving and delivering parcels.