Select a region
Fraud, particularly that targeting elderly people and vulnerable adults, is on the rise in Guernsey.
The latest stats on Fraud have been revealed in the 2023 Bailiwick Law Enforcement annual report, which provides an insight into crime activity dealt with by both Guernsey Police and the Border Agency.
The report indicated that incidents of fraud more than doubled last year, rising from 23 offences in 2022 to 50 offences in 2023.
Ruari Hardy, Head of Law Enforcement, remarked that the force is “seeing some fraud offences entering the safeguarding area now” and identified it as “a growth area potentially of criminality”.
“We've had a number of allegations of fraud related offenses committed against members of our community who are either elderly or vulnerable.”
This comes as the Office of the Data Protection Authority (ODPA) reported an increase in phishing scams earlier this year and a recent case in Jersey involved a vulnerable man being scammed out of £10,000.
Hardy also noted that some of these recorded offences may be from a single offender, with a single case of fraud involving many elements.
The rise in cases also follows the English national average.
Express will be publishing more analyse and interviews following the publication of the annual report shortly.
Comments
Comments on this story express the views of the commentator only, not Bailiwick Publishing. We are unable to guarantee the accuracy of any of those comments.