Fraudsters steal millions of dollars each year from victims, say Victoria Police

Victims of sophisticated scams lost millions of dollars last year, with some hoodwinked into giving away their entire life savings.

Victims of sophisticated scams lost millions of dollars last year, with some hoodwinked into giving away their entire life savings.

Detective Senior Sergeant Daryl Cullen said Boroondara businesses lost millions, sometimes due to scammers hacking a accounts and changing supplier bank details to their own.

Individuals more often fell victim to phone or online scams, he said.

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Fraudsters were skilled at charming their way into people’s pockets, and when that failed they weren’t afraid to try intimidatory tactics, Sen-Sgt Cullen said.

Some calls were from swindlers purporting to be from the Australian Taxation Office threatening legal action if the person didn’t comply, he said.

Fake door-to-door tradies were known to drive their victims to the bank to watch them withdraw cash for their unsolicited services, he said. “They’re so organised these people doing the scamming, they’re professional con artists,” Sen- Sgt Cullen said.

“People are getting ripped off. There’s one rule here, if it’s too good to be true, it’s too good to be true and people should make sure they verify everything.

“Once the money is gone, nearly in all cases it’s very difficult to get it back. Even when the offenders are caught, the chances of recovering the money is remote.”

Detective Senior Constable Jake Laidlaw of Stonnington Police said elderly residents in his area were being hit hard by scam tradies, with one person in Prahran paying $4500 to one earlier this month.

“They’ll literally walk into your house and say right, you owe us money,” he said.

“When you have a tradie rock up and look at your roof, close the door and call triple-0.”

Sen Sgt Cullen said another man his team spoke to lost his entire life savings, including money borrowed from his elderly parents, after investing in a scam that promised big monetary returns, he said.

He suggested people visit the Scamwatch website for scam advice, and he suggested elderly people check with younger family members before handing over cash to a tradie or stranger online.

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