Lottery Scam online

An Elderly woman sent £60,000 of her savings to cruel con artists who convinced her she had hit the jackpot in a foreign lottery. The 87-year-old, who lives alone in Saltford, was told she had won hundreds of thousands of pounds on the Canadian National Lottery.

The woman, who has no relatives, was told a ticket in her name had scooped a jackpot worth £730,000 - but that she would have to pay a fee for the money to be sent from Canada.

On three separate occasions over the past two months, she was asked for money to make sure she got her winnings. In total she sent £60,000 to addresses in Canada and Amsterdam, including a £33,000 cheque last month.

She was told her winnings would be with her by Sunday, August 1. But the day came and went without any sign of the money. She became increasingly suspicious and contacted police, who broke the news that the whole thing had been a scam.

Outraged officers have been liaising with their overseas counterparts to try to trace the perpetrators of the con. But Det Insp Guy Turner, of Bath CID, said because the money had been sent overseas, the hopes of ever seeing it again were slim. "Because the money has gone out of the country it makes it incredibly difficult for us," he said.

He warned: "If something is too good to be true, then it probably is. "If anyone is asked to do something like this, then they should get in touch with us at the police station or with trading standards officers."

Inspector Kevin Adams added: "This is a particularly callous and cold-hearted act against a frail and vulnerable 87-year-old woman who lives alone and has no relatives. "The scam has been used before and there have been other victims, not only in the Avon and Somerset policing district but other parts of the UK too. "We would urge anyone being contacted by anyone asking for money in relation to a lottery win - especially in Canada - to contact the Police.

"Similar scams are also being operated via the internet, when people are asked to part with significant sums of money to free up a larger sum. "We would urge people to be vigilant, especially the elderly who are specific targets for these ruthless and uncaring con merchants."

Victims are told that such lotteries work by picking people across the world at random, with the smooth-talking con artists keen to explain away why no ticket has ever been bought.

But Kirsty Langford, senior enforcement officer at Bath and North East Somerset Council's trading standards department, said: "If you haven't bought a lottery ticket then there is no way you can win - you don't get something for nothing."

A spokeswoman for the Government's Office of Fair Trading, which investigates such scams, said that last September someone had been conned out of £67,000 by the same trick.

She said Canada had two legitimate lotteries - called Super Sevens and 6/49 - which are operated nationally but privately run. "There is no Canadian National Lottery," she said. "The OFT is working with the Canadian authorities to try to take action against the fraudsters."

A phone line has been set up by the OFT for people who have been targeted by the Canadian National Lottery scam. This information is then shared between authorities in the UK and Canada, such as the National Criminal Intelligence Service, Interpol, the Royal Mounted Canadian Police and the Competition Bureau of Canada.

Using this information, the Canadian authorities make arrests and close down operations. Anyone who responds to a phone call or letter about the lottery scam has their details put on a target list which is distributed among other unscrupulous marketing companies.

The majority of respondents tend to be elderly. The advice from the OFT is never give out private details and, if in doubt, hang up. Fraudsters also use mail by sending out a 'cheque' promising a £10,000 win for just a £20 or £30 entry fee, but the small print reveals it is little more than a glorified raffle with a slim chance of winning.