Yahoo Finance Sydney woman allegedly forced to pay $8,000 for fake repairs: British man charged
A British citizen has been charged for allegedly trying to scam a Sydney woman out of thousands of dollars.
NSW Police allege that on 5th March, three men claiming to be roof repairers knocked on the door of a home in Haberfield in Sydney’s inner west.
An 82-year-old woman answered the door and was persuaded to pay the men to fix the roof.
The woman gave them $2,000 but they were allegedly not satisfied with that result, driving her to a bank so that she could withdraw another $6,000.
It was then that bank staff became suspicious and phone the police, with the three “roof repairers” fleeing the scene.
After an investigation, police arrested a 38-year-old British national on Friday afternoon at a road stop.
The man was charged at Redfern Police Station with dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception and denied bail.
Unfortunately this type of scam is not uncommon.
Earlier this month, a group of men reportedly demanded $30,000 from a Mosman woman – with one man already on the roof when they knocked on the door.
“They did con me and they did come into my house. What annoys me is it’s so unlike me. I’m almost embarrassed to think that I fell for it,” the woman told The Daily Telegraph.
“That’s what annoys me. My neighbours think I’m savvy and quick witted.”
Consumer Affairs Victoria, as a warning to vulnerable people, published this video in 2017 of Thelma, who was scammed $4,500:
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