The Yanping Police Station of the Datong Precinct recently received a report from staff at Hua Nan Commercial Bank&rsquos Dadaocheng Branch, stating that a customer might be the target of a scam and required police assistance. Officers promptly arrived at the bank and confirmed the situation with the bank staff.
Upon investigation, it was found that Mr. Liu, an elderly man born in 1944, had been communicating with an unknown contact via LINE. The individual claimed to offer an investment opportunity in &ldquoChangbai Mountain Ginseng&rdquo, promising high returns. Mr. Liu was persuaded and attempted to transfer NT$150,000 to the account provided by the individual.
Police and bank staff jointly explained common fraud tactics to Mr. Liu and reviewed the chat records between him and the scammer. It was discovered that the scammer not only fabricated the illusion of investment profits, but also coached Mr. Liu on how to respond to bank inquiries in order to evade detection. For instance, when bank staff asked about the purpose of the transfer, the scammer had instructed Mr. Liu to say it was either &ldquomoney for relatives&rdquo or for &ldquopurchasing health products&rdquo to avoid raising suspicion.
After the bank&rsquos verification process blocked the transaction, Mr. Liu informed the scammer about the account issue. The scammer then quickly changed strategy and urged Mr. Liu to use mobile banking instead, hoping to bypass the bank&rsquos questioning mechanism and ensure the money would still be transferred to the fraudulent account.
Fortunately, thanks to the timely intervention of the police and bank staff, the transaction was stopped and Mr. Liu realized he was being scammed&mdashultimately saving his hard-earned savings.
The Datong Police Precinct warns that scam groups often use social media or messaging apps to lure victims with phrases like &ldquohigh returns&rdquo or &ldquoguaranteed profit.&rdquo They frequently fabricate success stories to build trust and persuade victims to invest large sums of money. Police urge the public to stay vigilant and immediately report any suspicious transactions to the authorities or call the 165 Anti-Fraud Hotline to verify the situation and avoid financial loss.
