Tweet
• Lottery conned victims into sending £20 to receive a 'prize'
• Police raid results in recovery of £500,000
More than 20,000 victims of a prize draw scam will get their cash back today following action by the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca).
The losers, typically old and vulnerable people, will receive a letter from Soca with a cheque for £20, telling them they had been targeted by criminals.
Soca will inform them they were victims of a phoney lottery known as the International Prize Disbursement Center, which sent out personalised mailshots designed to fool recipients into believing they had won £2m in a sweepstake.
The return of the money to the 22,000 victims comes after a Soca raid last June on premises in Radstock, Somerset, when nearly £500,000 was recovered in cash – those who responded to the mailshot were told to send £20. Soca believes that without the raid the Radstock address could have taken in more than £35m in a year.
The International Prize Disbursement Center is just one of many mass marketing frauds that aim to steal relatively small sums of money from a large number of people. In common with many other scams, this featured an official-looking message which repeated the recipient's name in virtually every paragraph.
It included legal sounding wording such as "the recipient named below, herein and so authorised to receive this official priority dispatch by order of International Prize Disbursement Center". It was also headed "deadline sensitive – reply immediately".
The mailing was total nonsense, but it convinced enough people to send their £20. But although this money has been returned, police sources say there are many similar scams, so people should not be complacent.
Soca also admitted that although it is returning the cash, the perpetrators are overseas and outside the jurisdiction of UK law enforcement. Criminals involved usually use layers of secretive tax-haven companies and bank accounts to frustrate police work.
Soca's director of enforcement, Trevor Pearce, said: "A substantial blow has been dealt to their operation by cutting off this particular channel. Mass market frauds are often sophisticated and convincing – criminals know just which buttons to press to make people part with money, especially in an economic downturn when we are more susceptible to believing good news.
"Unfortunately, those who respond to a scam can find themselves on a list which is sold to other fraudsters. In the worst cases people lose substantial amounts of money, even their life savings."
Tips on how to avoid scams
• You have to participate in any fraud to be a victim – this is not like burglary or mugging so you can protect yourself.
• Ignore unsolicited mailings or phone calls offering big rewards for a small "investment".
• Remember there is no tooth fairy – the huge winnings on offer are pure fiction. If something seems too good to be true, it probably is.
• Try to protect any vulnerable people you know by reminding them there is no magic way to a fortune. Once someone falls for one scam, they will be on a "sucker list" and targeted by many others, often as much as 50 times a week.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
More...