People are being warned about fake vaccine scams after a 92-year-old woman was visited at her home and paid £160 to have a fake injection in her arm.
Police in London said that it happened in the Surbiton area of London and that the man told her he was from the NHS.
The victim allowed the man inside her home and was jabbed in the arm with what she described as a "dart like implement".
The man then asked for £160, which the victim paid as he said it would be reimbursed by the NHS, before leaving the premises. On Monday, January 4, the same man attended the victim’s address again, and asked for a further £100.
It is not yet known what substance, if any, was administered to the victim, but she was checked over at her local hospital and has suffered no ill effects following this encounter.
The man is described as white with a London accent, in his early thirties, 5ft 9 inches in height, medium build, with light brown hair that is combed back.
On his second visit to the victim’s address, he was wearing a navy blue tracksuit with white stripes down the side.
Detective Inspector Kevin Ives from the City of London Police’s Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit said: “This is a disgusting and totally unacceptable assault on a member of the public which won’t be tolerated.
“We are appealing to anyone who may have information that could assist us in identifying this man to get in touch. It is crucial we catch him as soon as possible as not only is he defrauding individuals of money, he may endanger people’s lives.”
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It comes as people in Wales were warned about fake vaccine scams by the chief medical officer Frank Atherton.
He said that scam text messages inviting people for a coronavirus vaccine are circulating at the moment.
His advice is: "You'll only be contacted by the NHS, usually by phone or post.
"No text from the NHS will ever ask for bank details or payment.
"Report scams by forwarding the text to Ofcom on 7726."
