This week’s Crime Watch Northern Beaches…
Two separate scams total $33,000 in lost funds for elderly victims in Frenchs Forest
Scammers continue to trick our more vulnerable community members.
On 26 February 2025, a 92-year-old man from Frenchs Forest was on his computer at home when he received a pop up notification that he had been hacked. The message stated he was not to touch anything and to call a number displayed on his computer screen.
The victim called the number and spoke to someone purporting to be from Microsoft. The offender kept the victim on the phone and gained remote access to the victim’s computer. The following day the victim detected two unauthorised transactions on his bank statement totalling over $23,000.
The victim’s bank is making inquiries to determine where the money was transferred and police are following up the contact phone number provided by the offender.
Earlier in the week, on 24 February 2025, a woman in her eighties from Frenchs Forest was called by a woman claiming to be from Australian Federal Police. The woman transferred the victim to a person purporting to be a Commonwealth Bank investigator who detected unauthorised bank transactions on the victim’s account in Nepal.
The offender convinced the victim to attend the CBA bank to withdraw almost $10,000 from two branches. She was instructed to lie if the CBA questioned her about the reason for the withdrawal, claiming there was a CBA insider involved. The offender told the victim a courier would attend to collect the cash with a code word. The courier arrived, and the victim handed him the cash.
The offenders tried the same trick a second time. The victim went to the bank again to withdraw $9,000 but on this occasion the victim was challenged by a suspicious teller. A bank manager questioned the victim, who revealed she was instructed to lie about the reason for the withdrawal. The bank manager informed the victim she had been scammed and advised her to call the police. The police attended the victim’s home and could hear incessant phone calls on the victim’s home phone. Police answered the victim’s phone and spoke to the offenders who were assertive and demanded to speak to the victim. The offenders soon realised their scam was exposed and stopped calling.
The police involved were surprised with how professional and well scripted the offenders were on the phone and appreciated how an elderly person could feel compelled to follow their demands.
Police are investigating.
Multiple cars damaged at Brighton Street, Freshwater
About 1.30am on 25 February 2025, three cars parked on Brighton Street, Freshwater were damaged.
An unknown offender broke a window on each of the cars and stole valuables.
One of the owners was woken by a notification on her phone and quickly realised someone had stolen her credit card from her car and used it at a Mosman service station.
Police will be reviewing CCTV footage of the Mosman transaction.
Crime Watch Northern Beaches is a weekly wrap up of local crimes and incidents from the Northern Beaches Police Area Command. If you saw or can help with any of the below incidents, please contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or here. All calls are treated in the strictest confidence. You can also contact Dee Why Police Station 9971 3399.
