A 93-year-old in Japan spotted a fake police call, alerted real officers, and the man who came for her ATM card was arrested. Here are the warning signs.
A 93-year-old woman in Aisho, Shiga Prefecture, Japan, turned a scam into an arrest. A caller posing as a police officer wanted her ATM card. She called the real police instead, played along, and officers were waiting at her door on October 22 when a 47-year-old man showed up.
On October 21, the caller told her there had been an unauthorized withdrawal from her bank account. He said it had been caught early, so it could be fixed quickly. First, he told her to freeze her account. Then he said police needed to examine her ATM card and offered to send an investigator to her home to pick it up.
They spoke again the next day to settle the details. The pickup was set for October 22.
The woman figured out it was a scam. She contacted the Higashiomi Precinct of the Shiga Prefectural Police. Then she pretended to be fooled. When the man arrived to collect the card, a team of real officers was already there. He was arrested on suspicion of attempted fraud.
The story has a few red flags that apply anywhere. The report notes that:
The timing also matters. Japan has seen a sharp rise in data leaks and cyberattacks in recent weeks, and many organizations have warned that personal information may be exposed. News like that can make a scary call sound more believable.
The man has not entered a plea or gone to trial. It is unclear whether he is the same person who made the phone calls. Police believe he worked with other criminals on the scheme, so more arrests may follow.
If someone claiming to be police or a bank asks for your card, hang up. Call your bank or the police yourself, using a number you trust. Share this story with older relatives, who are often the targets of this kind of scam.
No real bank or police officer needs to collect your card at your door, so hang up, call them directly, and warn older relatives.
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