Woman hunted by South Yorkshire Police after man is conned out of £5,000

An E-fit has been released of a woman who called at an 84-year-old Todwick man’s house to collect £5,000 he was instructed to withdraw from his account by a bogus Metropolitan Police officer.

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The bogus officer rang the elderly man on Tuesday, August 13 and told him he was the victim of a serious fraud and needed to call 999.

But the conman did not hang up and instead stayed on the line, fooling the victim into believing he was speaking to a 999 operator.LATEST: Motorcyclist critically injured in collision with car in SheffieldThe victim was told to get a taxi to his bank in Rotherham and not to disclose anything to cashiers.

He withdrew £5,000 and a young woman later called at his home to collect the money.The following day, the victim received another phone call asking him to withdraw more money.

On that occasion, bank staff questioned the victim and South Yorkshire Police was called.South Yorkshire Police said: “To protect yourself from becoming a victim of this type of fraud, follow these simple tips – don't reveal personal details, never give out personal or financial information over the phone, even if the caller claims to be from your bank.“Hang up. If you feel harassed or intimidated end the call. You have the right not to be pressurised into anything.“Ring the organisation. If you're unsure whether the caller is genuine, hang up and ring the company or bank they claim to be from. Make sure you find the number yourself and don’t use the one provided by the caller or allow them to transfer you.“Don't be rushed. Scammers will try to rush you into providing your personal details. They may say they have a time-limited offer or claim your bank account is at risk if you don't give them the information they need right away.”

Anyone with information should call South Yorkshire Police on 101 and quote incident number 696 of August 14.