Leading the fight against ruthless criminals where fraud costs more than just money.
Witnessing the emotional and financial impact on people who have fallen victim to fraudsters is the heart-breaking reality faced every day by LCC Scams Prevention Officer Andrew Turner.
Andrew, has supported, or is supporting 51 people so far this year, who have been targeted, many of whom have complex situations and need on-going support.
His referrals for romance fraud have increased dramatically in recent months – on average almost £8,000 is lost per victim in the UK, as calculated by UK Finance.
This is why Lincolnshire's scams prevention team are urging everyone to keep a watchful eye out for neighbours, friend and family members, especially those living alone.
"This sort of crime causes so much distress and harm to individuals on many levels," said Andrew. "It can happen to all kinds of people – not just the lonely or vulnerable, so preventing the crime is always the best way to avoid emotional and financial distress."
Be wary of online ‘friendships’
Mr B from Louth was befriended by someone online. He felt they had a formed a real connection and they quickly built up a relationship. The person asked about his family, his previous profession and they generally enjoyed getting to know each other.
Eventually the person said they wanted to come and visit Mr B and, as he had felt lonely for a long time, the thought of the visit was heart-warming. Due to Covid the person said they could not travel for a while, but needed to get official documents organised. In their country, these things were not free and so Mr B was asked to send £300 to cover these costs.
As time went by the requests for money increased and so did Mr B's desire for companionship. In total, Mr B has sent around £2000 in four months to his overseas friend.
"Mr B is lonely and struggling to pay for some of his basic needs. He relies on his state pension and had a little saved in his bank account. He also has some health concerns," Andrew added.