Lake Illawarra police target online fraud with new Technology Enabled Crime Unit
Lake Illawarra Police have cyber fraudsters in their sights, establishing a new unit to track down people using technology to scam or sell off stolen goods.
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In the space of just five weeks, officers from a new unit at Lake Illawarra Police District have arrested 28 people and recovered more than $100,000 worth of stolen goods.
To keep up with rising levels of tech related crime, Lake Illawarra police have established the Technology Enabled Crime Unit, designed to target offenders who use technology to commit crimes, conceal their identity or exchange goods.
The new unit is targeting a range of fraud-related crimes, from selling stolen goods in an online marketplace, to unauthorised access to funds through pay wave frauds, already laying more than 100 charges since its inception.
Lake Illawarra Police District Acting Inspector Matt Brophey said having a dedicated unit that is ready and able to react to technology-enabled crime in a short time frame will have a positive impact on local crime rates.
“Fraud is the emerging crime across the state, not just here in Lake Illawarra, and this is one of our initiatives to address that,” he said.
“We’ve already seen some great results in the past month and rest assured we plan on keeping the momentum going.”
Acting Inspector Brophey said social media and online marketplaces like Gumtree were becoming a hotspot for crime in the local area.
“Stolen property is regularly disposed of via social media and marketplaces and our team is trawling the internet looking for these things to identify and recover property,” he said.
Just last month, officers from the unit reunited Illawarra business owner James Noferi with more than $15,000 worth of tools and equipment, after they were allegedly stolen by a 19-year-old man who tried to sell them on social media.
“In the five weeks the unit has been operating they’ve recovered approximately $100,000 worth of stolen property,” he said.
“That includes a large heavy vehicle trailer worth $30,000 in one incident, a $10,000 car, they are good news stories and the victims involved are obviously very happy.”
While the unit is working hard to prevent cyber crime and fraud, Acting Inspector Brophey encouraged people to take steps to protect themselves.
“Some of the strategies people can use is to follow social media protocols for payment, don't do a direct transfer, change your passwords regularly and lock your mailbox,” he said.
“It sounds like a simple thing but securing your mailbox for theft where forms of credit cards or identification often get stolen.”
Acting Inspector Brophy also reminded the community that fraud offences can now be reported through the Police Assistance Line.
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