Elderly woman was tricked by “police” into staying at home – fraudsters tapped her accounts – Greater Oslo

The police believe the woman was tricked into staying at home for several days by two men and a woman who said they were police. As time passed, kroner by kroner disappeared from the woman’s accounts. The three people are charged with deprivation of liberty. They have already been charged with elder fraud. Impersonating the police – The woman has been required to remain confidential by someone posing as a police officer. They have ordered her to stay at home for a period of several days. This is what police prosecutor Alexander Bjorvatn Øien says and adds: – We have no information that there has been violence or threats involved. The woman in her 80s was just one of the victims of an extensive elderly scam in Oslo recently. This is how the fraud method, called “Safehouse scams” works: The fake police knock on the elderly person’s door and claim that they are there to help. They claim that someone has already tried to defraud the elderly person. But the “helpers” are none other than swindlers. – It is a way of exploiting the trust in the police institution and in the authorities, and also the trust we have in each other, says Øien. Does not plead guilty The fraud of the woman in her 80s is still being investigated by the police, who describe the case as serious. One of the three accused, a man in his 50s, has been in custody for the past two weeks. During Friday’s detention hearing, he was remanded in custody for another four weeks. He does not plead guilty and has not been questioned by the police, says the man’s defender Malin Storrvik. – It is a right he has, which he has used. He then mentioned in the court session today that he could imagine being questioned at a later date. One of the other accused, the woman, has explained one of the conditions to the police. The map below shows where fraud on the elderly has been committed in the Oslo area so far this year: The red dots show which areas, according to the police, fraud on the elderly has been committed in the Oslo area so far this year. The points are set generally for an area, and do not show the specific addresses where the frauds are supposed to have taken place. Will not comment on further arrests In recent weeks, the number of frauds on the elderly has exploded in Oslo, the police warn. In September alone, 24 elderly people are said to have been defrauded by people who have visited them at home. Nor have the other two, who are charged with fraud and deprivation of liberty, explained themselves to the police. The police will not say whether there may be more arrests. – I cannot comment on that, says police attorney Alexander Bjorvatn Øien. He also states that the woman in her 80s has explained what happened. – I can’t say much other than that I understand that it has been a strain for her to be exposed to this. The woman was also imposed other restrictions by the accused which the police attorney does not wish to elaborate on. – A series of restrictions which the police consider an unlawful deprivation of her liberty, and thus also a violation of the penal code’s provision on deprivation of liberty, says Bjorvatn Øien. DNB and the police: This is what you should do to deal with such fraud attempts Contact the police on 112, if someone answers the door and says they are from the police and that they need your BankID, your bank cards or your mobile phone. Contact your bank immediately if you suspect that you may have been the victim of fraud or you have provided information that you think others can use to gain access to your money. Feel free to hang up if the inquiry you receive feels uncomfortable, stressful or strange . ALWAYS hang up if you are asked to enter your BankID. Never give your BankID information to the police or the bank, or transfer money at the request of others. The bank or the police will never ask you for this. Please be aware that the police and bank telephone numbers can be misused, so that it can appear as if these actors are calling Contact the official number of the bank if you are in doubt, do not call back a number you have been provided by those who call you. Published 04.10.2024, at 16.28 Updated 04.10.2024, at 18.10



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