My mum has been caught out by overseas fraud. What can I do?

[mckenzie]

It's actually my mums husband (not my father) but he has now involved my mum too. I do t know exactly how much money that have sent but I know it's in the thousands.
The scam is that he is due some money from some old investment but it needs so especial for and paperwork to release the funds hence the need for money from him upfront.
I can't believe he has fallen for it and that my mum has let herself be talked into going along with it but it's too late I think to worry about that now. Perhaps I can persuade her to go to the bank and stop the latest transfer I don't know but I thinking that we should perhaps be going to the police. Am I right? Should the police be informed?

My Mum was conned out of over £60,000 on scams, when she was alone at home, with memory issues from a stroke. Really feel for you op. There is a website I think its called thinkjessica? that DH found that was very helpful in our case but may not be relevant to you. Good luck.

Its terrible
I think once people have committed financially its hard for them not to believe because facing up to the scam is so awful

Sorry to hear that hellymelly. I've been on that Jessica website and sent for their help pack. P and my mum refuse to look at any websites I tell them about and highlight these scams.

Roadwalker, that is so true and means that this will be with us for ever. It's already causing such friction between my siblings and me and our mum and P. Bloody horrible!

I'm shocked the police aren't helping you more would somewhere like age concern (if apt) be able to offer support?

I hear it is quite usual for victims to refuse to believe they have been tricked.

Is it a money for nothing con trick?

Is it related to savings or an investment in a UK company?

Very unlikely they're in the Philippines just because they say that's where they are (I appreciate you're not really going to go over there and try and find these people).

Have the police been round? They are extremely unlikely to listen to you, and perhaps regard your concerns as self-serving (protecting your own inheritance). They need to hear from an impartial outsider.

I think your mum's home is at risk, and if you think she is less gullible than your step-father, I would be tempted to suggest she takes some legal advice to safeguard her home.

Have you looked at the Action Fraud website?

Sorry this is happening to you
Have you tried sitting down with her partner showing him all the errors, maybe someone a bit removed like your partner, has your Mother been to the bank? Can she get a transfer reversed? Can she ask them not to do more of these payments? Separate her funds from his?

Ageuk have s leaflet and might have stuff on line

Sorry to raise this if I'm totally off the mark but is it possible P is scamming your mum?

I wondered that, NoArmani :( Did he bring any assets to the marriage, OP?

Thanks for all the replies.
I don't think P is scamming my mum. There is so much going on here,I don't think he is capable of this and his body language and demeanour lead me to believe that he is starting to realise he has been fleeced but because of the sum involved, he can't admit it to himself or to anyone.
We started completing the on line form for Fraud Action, the police arm of scam reporting. I had to leave before ipP had finished given the finer points and time line etc and he told me the website crashed before he could finish it. He says he's done it since but my mum thinks he hasn't. I haven't quizzed him about it as I very aware that are backing away for me and I want to keep things really open and smooth as possible between us so I'm kept in the loop about everything.

I will call the local police again today and see if they are interested in getting involved. Do phone traces still work these days, with over seas calls? But I'm not sure mum and P won't just tell the police and me to get lost even if the police will get involved.

Piglet john, it's a share scam. Sell your shares for ridiculously inflated price to someone "very keen to buy them all up away from The market hence paying the inflated rate" but then having to pay certificate release fees, transfer title charges etc.

Have they been in phone contact with these people? I don't think that's a good sign at all. And no doubt the calls will be made via the internet (at their end, I realise your parents will have been using their house phone) so v unlikely anything can be traced.

I would imagine the local police will point you back to Fraud Action - if it hasn't been reported yet (i.e. you've no crime number) they are still extremely dangerously exposed. The FA website says they will issue you a crime number so it ought to be (relatively) easy to check if he's done it.

I still can't understand, if he's selling his shares, why he's given them over a hundred grand. These are shares which he doesn't actually possess the paperwork for but which he supposedly bought years ago?

If they are talking about shares and other investments its probably also worth reporting it to the FCA (financial conduct authority) as they do a lot of the on boiler rooms and may be able to give you some advice. The other thing to watch for is they now scammers know they are vulnerable and will believe these things that may target your mum and her DP again. It's not unknown for someone to ring up pretending they are from a law firm to "help" them get their money back so long as they pay lots of fees etc. maybe if you warn them they won't get involved

Tribpot, I wish I knew. P isn't showing me everything.

From the documents I have seen it's
Account opening fees.
Bank transfer fees
Certificate fees
All crap of course.
And yes, I hadn't thought about the internet. 1471 says the number is withheld of course.
Fraud Action can't tell me anything as they are only the information gatherers. They allocate a case number and then it's handed over to the police to decide whether to investigate. They are unable to check under a name and see if a case number has been allocated.

How awful! There was a radio 4 programme recently (possibly an episode of You and Yours) which detailed a couple who were convinced they weren't being scammed - and the fraudsters were also impersonating Fraud Action/police officers and the victims were swallowing the whole thing.

But they have had phone contact with these people? I think that takes it up a notch at least in terms of the police's likely interest.

How much does he think these so-called shares are worth if fees of 100K seem reasonable?? What a nightmare.