File photo. [Shutterstock]
Officers in northern Greece have arrested a phone scammer who tried to defraud a man out of €50,000 but instead walked into a police trap, officials said Tuesday.
A police statement said the 39-year-old suspect allegedly belonged to a gang that pulled off phone scams on vulnerable people. They allegedly contacted a 48-year-old man in the northern town of Kozani and pretended that his daughter had had an accident and required funds to undergo urgent surgery.
The man agreed to provide the sum demanded, and notified the police. He left a bag containing €14,500 and 11 British gold sovereigns outside his home, and when the suspect came to pick it up officers arrested him.
Police are trying to identify another two gang members.
Such scams that usually target elderly or otherwise vulnerable people are both common and effective, despite repeated public awareness campaigns and a string of arrests.