Scammers pretending to be from Amazon take almost £18,000 from elderly Anglesey residents

Police are warning people to be aware of scam phone calls after two elderly residents on Anglesey had almost £18,000 take from their bank accounts.

Scammers have been targeting elderly members of the community by calling them and claiming to be from the internet retailer Amazon.

They persuade the victims to allow them to connect remotely to their computer to gain access to the their bank account, before withdrawing a significant amount of money.

There have been two cases on Anglesey over the weekend in which the victims lost £7,500 and £10,000.

Scams similar to this one reduced considerably during lockdown but now with more call centres opening, the numbers of scam reports are increasing again.

Financial Abuse Safeguarding Officer, DC Rachel Roberts, said: “Unfortunately, reports of scam phone calls have started to increase in the area and we believe that elderly members of the community are more vulnerable to being caught out by these tactics.

“If you have an elderly neighbour, family member or friend, please share the message that if you receive an unexpected phone call, or other communication, you should stop to consider whether this call might not be genuine.

“Companies such as Amazon wouldn’t call you out of the blue and make unsolicited requests to remote access your computer. If this happens to you, hang up and contact the company back on a known direct phone number.”

If you receive a suspicious phone call, report it to Action fraud on 0300 123 2040 or via their website.