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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| OAP loses £24,000 in lotto scam | OAP loses £24,000 in lotto scam |
| (about 22 hours later) | |
| An elderly woman from the Aberdeen area has been cheated out of £24,000 in a Euromillions scam, police have said. | |
| The woman, who is in her 70s, was persuaded to contact a phone number after receiving a letter telling her she had won the major lottery prize. | |
| Grampian Police warned it was the latest in a long line of frauds to have hit the north east, which have ranged from fake shares to cloned websites. | Grampian Police warned it was the latest in a long line of frauds to have hit the north east, which have ranged from fake shares to cloned websites. |
| It described the scam as a cruel fraud perpetrated against a vulnerable woman. | It described the scam as a cruel fraud perpetrated against a vulnerable woman. |
| The woman parted with the money in two instalments, after receiving a letter claiming she had won a substantial prize in the Euromillions Lottery. | The woman parted with the money in two instalments, after receiving a letter claiming she had won a substantial prize in the Euromillions Lottery. |
| 'Sophisticated scam' | 'Sophisticated scam' |
| When she contacted the phone number a man at the other end of the line convinced her to send two sums of money totalling £24,000 into nominated bank accounts to allow her to claim her "prize". | When she contacted the phone number a man at the other end of the line convinced her to send two sums of money totalling £24,000 into nominated bank accounts to allow her to claim her "prize". |
| She only realised she had been scammed when contacted by her bank. | She only realised she had been scammed when contacted by her bank. |
| Insp Roddy MacInnes said: "This was quite a sophisticated scam in that the second payment was paid into a genuine and unsuspecting British company's account. | Insp Roddy MacInnes said: "This was quite a sophisticated scam in that the second payment was paid into a genuine and unsuspecting British company's account. |
| "This was used as payment for vehicle parts sent to another part of the world, which in turn were sold on by the criminals." | "This was used as payment for vehicle parts sent to another part of the world, which in turn were sold on by the criminals." |
| He advised anyone who receives an unsolicited telephone call or letter suggesting they have either won a huge sum or could make vast amounts of money should be suspicious straightaway. | He advised anyone who receives an unsolicited telephone call or letter suggesting they have either won a huge sum or could make vast amounts of money should be suspicious straightaway. |
| Do you know the victim, or have you been affected by a similar scam? You can contact the BBC Scotland news website. Click here to send an email. |