Series of phone scams targeting elderly people in Plovdiv district

A series of phone scams, where perpetrators impersonate police officers, have taken place in recent days in the territory of the Plovdiv Regional Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. According to the reports received, between March 1 and 4, elderly victims over the age of 75 have been defrauded of a total of over 90,000 BGN and valuables.

In three of the cases they were thrown through terraces, and in the fourth - handed over to a courier.

Deceived into thinking they were assisting the police in an operation to apprehend phone scammers, an elderly man from Asenovgrad lost approximately 64,000 BGN. He threw the large sum of money from the terrace of his apartment after receiving a phone call from an individual who claimed to be a police officer.

Under the same pretext, the criminals also obtained a package containing 12,000 leva, 1,200 dollars, and numerous pieces of gold jewellery from a pensioner in Plovdiv. Meanwhile, two other victims, a woman from Plovdiv and another from Asenovgrad, were also targeted by the fraudsters, who again posed as police inspectors. This time, their demand for money was linked to a severe accident caused by a close relative.

One of the women threw 13,000 BGN from her terrace, while the other handed over 2,300 BGN in person to an unknown man. Active investigations are currently underway, under the supervision of the Prosecutor’s office, to identify those involved in the crimes.