Police Scotland have issued a warning over gift card scams after cruel fraudsters ripped off a Paisley pensioner for hundreds of pounds.
The scammers called the 83-year-old man on Sunday claiming to be from HMRC and told the 83-year-old he owed them a four-figure sum of money.
The elderly victim followed instructions to buy £600 worth of Google vouchers at a local supermarket before passing the voucher codes to them over the phone after he was told he would be arrested if he failed to comply.
When he attempted to buy more vouchers the following day, store staff became suspicious and alerted the police.
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Inspector Tracy Harkins from the Paisley police office said: "Yet again another vulnerable member of the community has been targeted by these disgusting individuals. I would like to urge local residents to speak with their elderly or vulnerable friends and relatives to prevent this type of crime occurring.
"Legitimate businesses would never request payment by means of gift vouchers to pay an outstanding debt. We have seen this crime occurring time and time again by means of various voucher requests including ITunes and Google. Unfortunately the common targets are generally elderly residents.
"If you are in any doubt about the legitimacy of phone calls received please hang up and contact the company or organisation directly, do not use the telephone number provided by the caller'. If you have been a victim of this type of crime please contact Police Scotland on Telephone Number 101."
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