A Stewartry man has been conned out of thousands of pounds in a texting scam.
The victim, who police said did not wish to be identified, was taken in by a fake message purportedly from HM Revenue and Customs.
He was warned that unless he paid up he would face court action and his assets being seized.
Sergeant Colin Scott, who is based at Castle Douglas, warned everyone to be on their guard against the ongoing racket.
He said: “The man was conned via a phone call in relation to a text message he received from someone pretending to be from the HMRC.
“He was told that if he did not pay taxes which are due, court action would be undertaken against him and all his assets seized. They gave him details of a bank account to transfer money to.
“It was a local man who was scammed and he lost several thousands of pounds.”
Sgt Scott added: “These people aim to prey on people’s fears. They are very good at what they do.
“The threat of court action and assets being seized can cause a great deal of alarm to people.
“We are putting out this information so everybody can be made aware of this.
“It is very important to get the message out to stop other people being caught out.”
“Any contact from the HMRC will not be by text – it will only be by official means.”
