Man impersonates police officer, reads indictment order via video, swindles elderly woman out of nearly 200 million VND.
Ms. L. (77 years old) was fortunate to escape a 200 million VND scam when she received a video call from someone impersonating a police officer, reading out an indictment against her.
On May 8th, the Son La Provincial Police announced that Ms. Pham Thi L. (77 years old, residing in Moc Chau town, Son La province) had received a call from an unknown phone number.
The caller was a man who identified himself as a Hanoi City Police officer and informed Ms. L. that she was under investigation for her involvement in a drug trafficking ring.
After speaking on the phone, the scammers continued to video call Ms. L.
During this call, the group dressed in police uniforms and filmed a realistic-looking police station to gain Ms. L.'s absolute trust, forcing her to follow all their instructions.
According to the police, the scam group staged a scene where they read out an indictment and charged the suspect, then demanded that Ms. L. transfer all of her savings to an account they provided.
Terrified by the threats, Ms. L immediately took all of her savings, nearly 200 million VND, to the bank to transfer to the scam groups.
However, before going to the bank, Ms. L. visited the Thao Nguyen Ward Police Station for advice. There, after listening to her account of the entire situation, the police officers quickly determined that she was the victim of a sophisticated scam aimed at stealing her assets.
