Claire Starr, South Eastand
Alex Bish,South East Investigations
A Kent couple have described their “terrifying” experience being conned out of nearly £30,000 by scammers who impersonated police.
Wendy and Ken, who live near Canterbury, say the scam started with a phone call from a so-called detective constable, claiming someone had been arrested for trying to use their bank card in London.
Wendy, 81, said she then received another call supposedly from a detective sergeant, claiming police were investigating fraudulent activity within their local bank.
She was then encouraged to withdraw cash for several days and hand it over to a courier, who was sent to a location near their address to pick up the money.
Kent Police said six victims had reported this courier fraud to them, with four of them losing £76,000 in total between them.
Wendy and her husband, who are speaking out to warn others, said the scammers were so convincing and claimed they were from the Metropolitan Police.
“We thought we were helping to stop what he was saying was this little gang working within Canterbury trying to steal people’s money,” she said.
Describing the moment they realised they had been conned, Wendy said scammers had asked to come and see the couple on a Saturday to take a full statement.
“He gave us a time and we waited and it went by, and we thought we’d been had,” she said.
‘It was horrifying’
“It was absolutely terrifying and since then it has affected both of us very, very badly.
“The stress it has caused, it has been constantly on our minds,” she added.
“We were used so blatantly. It was horrifying. I can’t believe they could sleep easy at night knowing what they are doing.”
Ken, 86, said he fell for it as well, despite being used to scam calls and that he had questioned it at first.
“I can’t believe I’ve gone along with it and this is what hurts more than ever,” he said.
Ken said the scammers also discouraged them from speaking to their family.
“In a way you don’t want them stressed and you don’t want them, in trying to help, to make things worse,” he said. “We’ll solve it ourselves.”
A “courier fraud” is when a fraudster calls a victim claiming to be a police officer or bank official, claiming their bank card has been used fraudulently.
- The caller often sounds plausible and might confirm the victim’s name, address and basic information, which could be easily obtained.
- You may be asked to call your bank using the phone number on the back of your card, or to hang up and call 101 or 999 to verify an officer’s identity.
- However, the fraudster will keep the line open at their end, with a second person acting as the switchboard who will claim they have put you through. When the call is made, you are unknowingly connected straight back to them or their friends.
- The scam caller then arranges for a “courier” to collect the card from the victim’s home and uses it to make purchases or withdraw money.
Det Con James Burr from Kent Police said scammers targeted certain areas and then moved on to another town or city the following week.
“They will have a list of phone numbers and in this case they targeted the area of Canterbury for around a week,” he said.
“Elderly people are trusting of the police, and because they are so trusting of us, the scammers also know that. They will use fake police details to then fool individuals into thinking they are the police they’re talking to.”
Kent Police advised anyone who suspects a call may be fraudulent that neither banks nor the police would ever ask someone for their PIN, or send a courier to collect money from them.
Officers investigating this case said a 19-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of fraud by false representation and released on bail while enquiries continued.
The Met Police says it is “clamping down” on courier fraud and an operation running since February 2025 has seen a 46% decrease in reported offences.