Jailed for his part in fraud

Arif Sattar (32) was part of a group who posed as a police officer and as bank staff to persuade victims to hand over their money

The group contacted ten victims, including two 93-year-olds, in March 2017 and told them their bank accounts had been targeted and immediate action was needed to protect their money.

In some cases men, including Sattar, met the victims while one of them posed as a police officer, to encourage the handover of thousands of pounds. The men showed a Police Scotland logo on a phone as identification.

Most of the intended victims identified the suspicious behaviour and refused to hand over their money, but Sattar and the group defrauded three victims of a total of £16,780.

The police were called when one of the victims became suspicious. The car the gang had been using was traced to a Motherwell property where Sattar was staying. Officers found 12 mobile phones in Sattar’s bedroom.

Sattar admitted the fraudulent scheme and was jailed for three years at Glasgow Sheriff Court.

Procurator Fiscal for Glasgow and Strathkelvin, Moira Orr, said: “This was a callous fraud by a group of men who took advantage of people’s trust to obtain their money.

“It is a clear example of the need to be vigilant and never provide personal details over the phone unless you initiated the call.”