Ratzeburg (ots) – May 11, 2022 | District of Duchy-Lauenburg – Aumühle Already last week there was a case of fraud in Aumühle, in which the perpetrator pretended to be the son of the victim via WhatsApp and wanted to steal around 2,500 euros.
An 84-year-old senior received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number. Supposedly it would be the Aumühlerin’s son, who would have a new number because he had misplaced his mobile phone. In typical fashion, the question followed shortly thereafter as to whether transfers could be made for him, as there were problems with online banking due to the lost smartphone.
In the firm belief that it was actually her son, the elderly woman transferred around EUR 2,500 to the specified bank account. Luckily for her, the house bank got in touch a little later, since there were apparently problems with the execution of the transfer, so that the money was not booked. The recipient data was incorrect.
It was only then that the dizziness was discovered and the elderly woman filed a criminal complaint. In the last few weeks, the mesh has also increased in the Stormarn district.
In Barsbüttel, a 71-year-old woman (on April 28, 2022) and a 70-year-old senior citizen (on May 3, 2022) received corresponding messages from the alleged children. While the 70-year-old saw through the scam and made no payment, the 71-year-old woman paid 1,300 euros to an alleged child.
The same happened to two Glinders, a 67-year-old (on 05/06/2022) and a 64-year-old woman (05/02/2022). Both donated a smaller four-figure sum of cash in good faith to help their children in need.
Unfortunately, people are falling for the WhatsApp trick again and again. Therefore, the police would like to point out again at this point to deal sensitively with messages from unknown numbers. The easiest way to verify the authenticity of the contact is to call or meet the person named in person.
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