Police hid in flat in Ljungby – arrested suspected fraudsters in the act
An elderly Ljungby resident suspected a scam after a call about a forced drainage pipe inspection and called the police. Officers waited hidden in the flat when the suspected fraudsters arrived.
Police hid in the flat – arrested suspected fraudsters at scheduled home visit
An elderly person in Ljungby received a call from someone claiming to represent a company hired by the person's home insurance provider. The pipes needed to be flushed, the message went – otherwise home insurance would cease to be valid. A home visit was booked.
However, the person began to suspect that something was not right and turned to their relatives. They contacted the police, who had already received several similar reports and immediately recognised the details in the story.
"It was the details they provided to the police when they called in that matched other cases where we suspect fraud," Samuel Persson, area police officer in Ljungby, told SVT Nyheter.
Since the police received the information before the suspected crime had been carried out, Samuel Persson and his colleagues went to the flat in advance and hid there. When the suspected fraudsters came to carry out the home visit, the police were already inside the flat waiting, and the arrest could be made.
Sharp increase in physical vishing in south police region
The incident in Ljungby is part of a broader pattern. The number of reports of so-called physical vishing – where perpetrators pose as tradespeople or service personnel to gain entry to homes – has increased markedly in the south police region for three weeks running:
- Week 31: Eleven reports in total, of which six completed crimes and five attempts.
- Week 32: Sixteen reports in total, of which eleven completed crimes and five attempts.
- Week 33: Twenty reports in total, of which fourteen completed crimes and six attempts.
A total of 47 cases were reported over the three weeks, which corresponded to just over 15 reports per week on average.
The fact that the elderly person in Ljungby chose to consult their relatives before the home visit took place was crucial in allowing the police to act in time.
Source: SVT Nyheter