1st grant given to the Mousehold Defenders, Norwich. Pictured: a thankyou presentation to (R) Pat Siano (Mousehold Defenders Secretary) who has been with the Defenders since 1974. Also pictured are (L) Clare Cohen (Publicity Officer) and (C) Lisa Waterman (Mousehold Defender). PHOTO: IAN BURT COPY:Kimberley Briscoe FOR:EN EDP pics © 2007 (01603)772434
By Stephen Pullinger
Sunday, March 11, 2012
8:00 AM
A Norwich woman wants to alert the public to a new “sick” email sent by a conman posing as a serviceman in Afghanistan.
Clare Cohen, of Alford Grove, said she had become accustomed to receiving the now familiar spoof emails from Africa, promising a share in a fortune in exchange for personal information often including bank details.
However, she was horrified to receive the new-style email hoping to exploit sympathy for servicemen – in the week that six British soldiers were killed in Afghanistan.
The email was sent to her Yahoo account set up for her role as publicity spokesman for the Mousehold Heath Defenders and purportedly came from a Sgt David Halliday serving in Afghanistan.
It claims that on a previous tour of duty in Iraq, he discovered money hidden in barrels during a rescue operation in Baghdad and stashed away 12.5 million dollars, arguing that the dishonesty was justified because of the appalling “hell hole” they were living in and the trauma of seeing his best friend blown up by a bomb.
In the now familiar twist to this type of email, the reader is asked for personal information – name address and telephone number – so “Sgt Halliday” can supposedly send a parcel containing the money out of the country to someone.
Mrs Cohen, left, said: “I think it is absolutely disgusting to send emails like this. It hit me really hard because it arrived just the day before the death of the six soldiers was announced.”
She said she was also concerned that there might be a genuine serviceman with a similar name who would be unfairly maligned by the sick hoax. She said: “I have passed this email on to the Metropolitan Police in London and I feel Army officials should be made aware of it as well.”
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said that anyone concerned about possible scams could access helpful advice on the website www.actionfraud.org.uk
He said: “We would also urge anyone who feels they have become a victim of fraud to report it to their local police straightaway.”
The public should be alert to new variations of scam emails, he added.
Have you been a victim of a scam? Call our reporters on 07501 481521 or email eveningnews@archant.co.uk
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8
comments
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Oh dear my heart bleeds. Just delete it like everyone else. The only people taken in by these things deserve it for being so thick (and greedy!).
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Report this commentSunday, March 11, 2012
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Oh dear my heart bleeds. Just delete it like everyone else. The only people taken in by these things deserve it for being so thick (and greedy!).
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Report this commentSunday, March 11, 2012
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I got an email that said put £100 on your doorstep in a brown paper bag, so I did. How was I to know it was a con. Let this be a warning to others.
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Report this commentSunday, March 11, 2012
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Obviously the EDP halfwit is in charge of picture captions again
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Report this commentSunday, March 11, 2012
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“She said she was also concerned that there might be a genuine serviceman with a similar name who would be unfairly maligned by the sick hoax”
I doubt it, most people aren’t stupid enough to fall for this sort of rubbish! I think there has been a slight overreaction, why is this even in the news??
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Report this commentSunday, March 11, 2012
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Anyone who fell for this scam – or indeed any of them – will not be doing it out of sympathy but from greed and a willingness to undertake what is clearly an illegal act. Quite frankly they deserve to be ripped off.
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Report this commentSunday, March 11, 2012
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A couple or more times I’ve received emails from very attractive Russian ladies who apparently are highly attracted to me, even though they’ve not seen a pic of me or know anything about me. I just hit delete and didn’t feel the need to involve the police or have my mugshot in the paper.
Anyone with an email account will get spam, it’s not newsworthy.
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Report this commentSunday, March 11, 2012
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Oh get a grip, hit delete and then forget about these emails. Its no different to the “I have an ATM card with $3.5m in your name emails” that fly around at the moment…just delete them. There are some devious people around praying on peoples vulnerability, and dare I say it, stupidity. Just ignore them…simple!
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Report this commentSunday, March 11, 2012