20 April 2019

Neighbourhood Watch News

From St Mary's And St James Ward Police SNT Team - PCSO Lovyna Dee Email: stmarys.stjames.snt@met.police.uk  Tel: 020 8721 2816  Twitter: @MPSStMarysRY Dedicated Ward Officers: PC Peter Rose - PC Sophie Scott - PCSO Lovyna Dee - PCSO Angel Parnell  Crimes on the ward this week,

Theft from Motor Vehicle - Thursday 11th April at 12:25 - 12:30hrs on Bourne Road, Bexley. Unknown suspect broke into victims van and stole tools.

Commercial Burglary - Tuesday 16th April at 04:18hrs on Bexley High Street. Suspect has kicked the door open to the venue and stolen the till containing £50 cash.

Attempted commercial Burglary - Tuesday 16th April at 03:00 - 04:00hrs on Bexley High Street. Unknown suspect attempting to gain entry into the venue by using an iron bar to wedge open the metal security shutters - no entry gained.

GOOD NEWS: On Saturday Sophie and Pete went to Ellenborough road where there had been several calls to police regarding an aggressive male who had been knocking on doors and trying to pick fights, one call stated that the male had a knife. The male was soon identified and after some investigation was arrested for multiple offences, this investigation is ongoing.

After having arrested one suspect for the ATM card frauds on Saturday 6th April, it was learnt he was of interest to the UK Border Force and was deported. The investigation continues and the second suspect was identified and arrested yesterday (Wednesday 17th). We have also been able to make contact with Barclays who own the ATM in Nisa and we have offered our recommendations regarding having the ATM updated or replaced. The investigation still continues however we have made vital steps closer to stopping the offences and encouraging prevention by the bank.

From Burns Close, Neighbourhood Watch Member Online Banking & Card Distraction Theft A card reader is a device issued by banks to its customers to log in to online banking and / or authenticate online transactions. Some require you to insert a card and some do not, however, once you enter your allocated PIN correctly, a unique code is issued to enable the required online process to commence. pinSENTRY is the brand name of one such device, issued by one of the major banks. Used correctly, card readers are an invaluable way of protecting your money. However, when a third party wishing to acquire a code is involved, alarm bells should be ringing immediately. Can I remind people that if your bank calls you that they will NEVER ask you to put your card into a PINsentry device and ask you to put your PIN number in and then give them the code generated. This can enable them to hack into your online banking. I sadly had a customer on Saturday at my work who had a scam call and unfortunately fell for it. They ended up moving all her savings from accounts to a 'holding' account. This poor lady was devastated. Another issue I dealt with - an elderly lady was approached in Morrisons car park at Erith stating she had 'dropped' £20. They offered to put the cash securely in her purse whilst she was holding her shopping. During the distraction theft they took her bank card. They must have watched her in Morrison putting her PIN number in. They subsequently made two £300 withdrawals from her account. Please please cover your hand over the keypad when putting your PIN number in. And be aware of your surroundings. Is there someone nearby 'on their phone' that may be filming you entering your PIN or watching you. Ask them to move away before completing transaction or simply walk away and use an alternative machine.

From Dana Wiffen, Neighbourhood Watch Office Non-Payment Of Income Tax Phone Scam  A NW Member from Welling called today to inform us that they had had a call which was a recorded message saying that they were being prosecuted for non-payment of Income Tax and to press 1 on their phone, which the person did. He was then asked information, name which he gave and DOB. He then realised it was bogus and refused to give DOB. Then the caller became aggressive and hung up. The caller was foreign sounding he called from 01487 343556.