Elderly victim scammed out of £72,000 in East Lothian after caller pretends to be from Santander

An elderly victim in East Lothian has been scammed out of £72,000 by a caller who pretended to be from bank Santander.

Authorities in the area have released warning after the high value fraud, saying that the victim was persuaded to move the money out of their account after receiving a call from someone claiming to be from the Santander Fraud Department.

The called proceeded to ask the victim to move money immediately for ‘prevention purposes’ which they did.

Elderly victim scammed out of £72,000 in East Lothian after caller pretends to be from Santander

Police have reminded people not to be afraid to hang up and call a trusted number to confirm the validity.

In a social media post, the also added that fraudsters will use spoof numbers to make the call appear its from a genuine bank number, saying: “it is for this reason police advise that if you call your bank back.

"If you have concerns or suspicions report them to police as soon as possible on 101.”

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