Conman Poses as Cop to Swipe Pensioner’s Bank Cards in Ruthless Scam
A heartless fraudster conned an elderly man out of his bank cards before going on a high-spending spree at a Westfield shopping centre. Mohammad Hussain, 37, from Ben Johnson Road, E1, pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud by false representation.
Fake Cop Tricks Pensioner into Handing Over Cards
Hussain rang the victim, a man in his 80s from Southwark, pretending to be a police officer investigating fraud on his bank account. He bombarded the pensioner with questions about his cards and even coaxed PIN numbers out of him. Hussain then urged the victim to withdraw £4,000 from the bank.
The conman spun a tale about catching “suspects” and claimed the victim needed to verify fingerprints at the bank. When the victim said he couldn’t get there, Hussain promised to send someone round—and was soon captured on CCTV walking up to the man’s front door. He convinced the victim to hand over his bank cards in an envelope.
Spending Spree and Sinister Phone Trick
Hussain went on to rack up £1,800 in purchases at Westfield Stratford’s shops. Meanwhile, the victim’s attempt to call 999 was sabotaged by Hussain’s cunning technique that rerouted emergency calls back to him.
Later, the victim’s granddaughter alerted the bank and police. A suspicious caller claiming to be from the bank warned the family to “be careful who he gives his card to” and tried to downplay the scam just before Christmas.
Victim Left Traumatized as Fraudster Walks Free on Suspended Sentence
The victim was left terrified, struggling to eat, isolated, and unable to trust anyone. Hussain was finally arrested in August 2019 after being stopped by police on an unrelated issue.
On 4 March, Hussain received a suspended 18-month sentence at Inner London Crown Court. The sentence runs concurrently on both counts, suspended for two years.
