The Goa police have issued an advisory with a plea to citizens to stay alert and not to hand over their valuables to any person.
The advisory comes against the backdrop of two incidents reported in the jurisdiction of Vasco and Fatorda police stations wherein miscreants cheated senior citizens by impersonating as police officers.
District police Chief, Tikam Singh has cautioned the public not to trust anyone claiming to be a police officer without a valid identity card. In case of doubt, immediately contact the nearest police station or dial 100/ 112, he said while making a plea to citizens to inform elderly family members about these incidents so they stay cautious.
In the two cases, the accused persons followed an elderly citizen who reported that an unknown person, posing as a police officer, approached them while they were out on the road wearing gold ornaments. The accused falsely claimed that wearing gold in public was unsafe due to recent snatching incidents and advised them to remove and keep the ornaments safely. Trusting the impersonator, the victim handed over the ornaments. Thereafter accused person/s wrapped something in the piece of paper and gave it to the claiming that his said gold ornaments were in the wrapped paper after that accused person/s fled away from the spot.
The modus operandi appears simple, the accused specifically targeted elderly persons walking alone, uses fear tactics, claiming there had been thefts in the area, and suggested removing gold for “safety.”
Once the ornaments were handed over to accused persons, they wrapped something in the piece of paper and gave it to the claiming that his/her gold ornaments were in the wrapped paper before fleeing from the spot.
